Olympics-Volleyball-Turkey edge China to reach first semi-final, U.S and Brazil advance
Adds quotes and details after all quarter-finals
By Rohith Nair
PARIS, Aug 6 (Reuters) -European champions Turkey reached the semi-finals of the Olympic women's volleyball for the first time by beating China 3-2 on Tuesday in a see-saw encounter, while the United States advanced with a straight sets victory over Poland.
Despite injuries on the Turkish team, they beat China in a rematch of last year's Volleyball Nations League final where the European side claimed their first title.
Cuban-born Melissa Vargas was Turkey's lynchpin with a whopping 42 points that included 38 kills as they prevailed 23-25 25-21 26-24 21-25 15-12.
Vargas, who was named the most valuable player at the European Championship last year, fell two points shy of equalling Croatian Barbara Jelic's record for most points in an Olympic match.
"Today we played with our hearts. We have a lot of injuries and I am so proud of my players. We put everything on the line to reach the semi-finals," Turkey's Italian coach Daniele Santarelli said.
"We didn't play amazing volleyball. We have a lot of limits, but anything can happen; we're going to the semi-finals."
Turkey will play Italy after the world's top-ranked side beat Serbia in straight sets, 26-24 25-20 25-20.
China were gold medallists in 2016 and outside hitter Zhu Ting said the Paris Games could be her last Olympics.
"I will cherish every match and every opportunity to touch the ball. If I get injured again, these touches could be the last of my career. That's why I value it so much," the 29-year-old said.
U.S. BRUSH POLAND ASIDE
The United States were barely tested in their quarter-final against Poland as the defending champions knocked out the world number four team 25-22 25-14 25-20 to set up a semi-final clash with Brazil, who are undefeated in Paris.
Andrea Drews was top scorer for the Americans with 13 points and was well supported by Kathryn Plummer and Avery Skinner with 12 each.
Although Poland had a healthy lead in the third set, the Americans rediscovered their rhythm with a series of blocks to lift the team and take the lead before sealing the win.
"We definitely have some experienced players who calmed things down a bit. This Olympics, rarely will teams go 3-0, so I'm really pleased with the way we mentally stayed in it despite having a slower start (in the third set)," Drews said.
Tokyo Games silver medallists Brazil beat the Dominican Republic in straight sets to advance to the final four.
"We didn't know what to expect because we knew they are a good team. Their attacking is really good," Brazil's Julia Bergmann said after the 25-22 25-13 25-17 victory.
"But we played focused, we played every ball like it was the last one -- that was the difference between our team and their team. The result is that we won 3-0, so it was really good."
Reporting by Rohith Nair in Paris; editing by Clare Fallon and Bill Berkrot
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