USA women sweep Italy, remain undefeated in World Cup
by Paul Soriano USA Volleyball Manager, Public Relations & Publications
Danielle Scott scored a match-high 15 points and Keba Phipps added 13 as the USA women's national volleyball team improved to 3-0 at the World Cup with a sweep of defending world champion Italy at Yoyogi Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday afternoon (late Sunday night in the United States).
Scott (Baton Rouge, La.) had 10 kills and a match-high five blocks in Team USA's 25-22, 25-22, 25-19 victory in a rematch of last year's World Championship won by Italy in five sets.
The United States, China and Japan are the last three remaining unbeaten teams in the tournament, the first Olympic qualifier of the quadrennial.
The top three teams at the 12-team, two-week, round-robin tournament earn automatic bids to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
Phipps (Las Vegas, Nev.), who is playing with protective goggles to guard an eye she has injured twice in the past year, had 10 kills and three blocks as Team USA improved to 24-12 overall this season before 8,940 fans.
Logan Tom added 10 points in the victory for the world's top-ranked team, while Tayyiba Haneef and Heather Bown each added nine points.
Tom (Salt Lake City, Utah) had nine kills and one block, while Bown (Yorba Linda, Calif.) added eight kills and one block. Haneef (Laguna Hills, Calif.) blasted nine kills in the win.
Nadia Centoni scored 14 points and Francesca Piccinini added 10 to lead Italy (2-1), which had just two blocks in suffering its first loss of the tournament.
In other action on Monday, China improved to 3-0 with a sweep of the Dominican Republic (1-2), while Japan remained undefeated (3-0) with a thrilling 3-2 win over Korea (0-3). Argentina (1-2) swept Egypt (0-3) to pick up its first win, while Brazil (2-1) downed Poland (1-2), 3-0, and Turkey (1-2) squeezed by Cuba (1-2) in five sets.
Team USA now has a travel day on Tuesday, Nov. 4, as it moves to Nagoya, Japan, for the second round of the World Cup. The Americans will play Egypt on Wednesday, Nov. 5 before closing out the second round on Thursday, Nov. 6 against Japan.
In the third round (Nov. 8-10) the United States battles Poland, Turkey and the Dominican Republic. In the fourth and final round, Team USA squares off against Brazil, China and four-time defending World Cup champion Cuba (1989, 1991, 1995 and 1999).
2003 Women's World Cup Standings
China (3-0) Japan (3-0) USA (3-0) Italy (2-1) Brazil (2-1) Turkey (1-2) Cuba (1-2) Dominican Republic (1-2) Poland (1-2) Argentina (1-2) Korea (0-3) Egypt (0-3)
For more information, go to the USA Volleyball web site.
Danielle Scott scored a match-high 15 points and Keba Phipps added 13 as the USA women's national volleyball team improved to 3-0 at the World Cup with a sweep of defending world champion Italy at Yoyogi Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday afternoon (late Sunday night in the United States).
Scott (Baton Rouge, La.) had 10 kills and a match-high five blocks in Team USA's 25-22, 25-22, 25-19 victory in a rematch of last year's World Championship won by Italy in five sets.
The United States, China and Japan are the last three remaining unbeaten teams in the tournament, the first Olympic qualifier of the quadrennial.
The top three teams at the 12-team, two-week, round-robin tournament earn automatic bids to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
Phipps (Las Vegas, Nev.), who is playing with protective goggles to guard an eye she has injured twice in the past year, had 10 kills and three blocks as Team USA improved to 24-12 overall this season before 8,940 fans.
Logan Tom added 10 points in the victory for the world's top-ranked team, while Tayyiba Haneef and Heather Bown each added nine points.
Tom (Salt Lake City, Utah) had nine kills and one block, while Bown (Yorba Linda, Calif.) added eight kills and one block. Haneef (Laguna Hills, Calif.) blasted nine kills in the win.
Nadia Centoni scored 14 points and Francesca Piccinini added 10 to lead Italy (2-1), which had just two blocks in suffering its first loss of the tournament.
In other action on Monday, China improved to 3-0 with a sweep of the Dominican Republic (1-2), while Japan remained undefeated (3-0) with a thrilling 3-2 win over Korea (0-3). Argentina (1-2) swept Egypt (0-3) to pick up its first win, while Brazil (2-1) downed Poland (1-2), 3-0, and Turkey (1-2) squeezed by Cuba (1-2) in five sets.
Team USA now has a travel day on Tuesday, Nov. 4, as it moves to Nagoya, Japan, for the second round of the World Cup. The Americans will play Egypt on Wednesday, Nov. 5 before closing out the second round on Thursday, Nov. 6 against Japan.
In the third round (Nov. 8-10) the United States battles Poland, Turkey and the Dominican Republic. In the fourth and final round, Team USA squares off against Brazil, China and four-time defending World Cup champion Cuba (1989, 1991, 1995 and 1999).
2003 Women's World Cup Standings
China (3-0) Japan (3-0) USA (3-0) Italy (2-1) Brazil (2-1) Turkey (1-2) Cuba (1-2) Dominican Republic (1-2) Poland (1-2) Argentina (1-2) Korea (0-3) Egypt (0-3)
For more information, go to the USA Volleyball web site.
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