Turkey celebrate their spot in the semis after a well-deserved 4-1 win versus Bulgaria
Ljubljana, Slovenia, September 15, 2017 – 2015 runner-up Turkey handed Bulgaria their first defeat at the 2017 FIVB Women’s U23 World Championship 4-1 (15-9, 15-12, 15-11, 10-15, 15-13) here in Ljubljana on Friday evening, thus advancing to Saturday’s semifinals. Bulgaria’s destiny – on the other hand – lies in the hands of Brazil and Cuba who will meet Friday night in the last encounter of Pool B.
All matches in Ljubljana are played under a
new scoring system currently being tested: a best-of-seven, 15-point set format.
Turkey (12 points) shot ahead of Bulgaria (11) in the rankings of Pool B while reigning champions Brazil (9) can follow suit by defeating Cuba in Friday’s last duel here in Pool B.
Turkey’s outside hitter Hande Baladin and opposite Ebrar Karakurt scored 16 kills apiece for the winning side while Silvana Chausheva was the top scorer for Bulgaria with 12 points, including four blocks.