The United States’ women’s volleyball team is very familiar with Brazil, and that’s exactly who they’ll face next after defeating Poland in the quarterfinal round Tuesday.
Poland came into the tournament as the No. 4 ranked team in the world, but the American squad was able to dispatch them in straight sets by a 25-22, 25-14, 25-20 margin to advance to the semifinals for the fifth consecutive Olympics.
Avery Skinner had 12 points and Andrea Drews had 13 for the victorious American squad, with Kathryn Plummer picking up a couple of key service points in the final set to ensure the victory.
Jordyn Poulter, a University of Illinois alum, had four points in the match, and Kelsey Robinson added a point to help the U.S. to a critical victory.
This win will set up a match with Brazil in the semifinal round, an opponent the Americans are all too familiar with. After suffering back-to-back gold medal match defeats against Brazil in 2008 and 2012, the United States got their revenge in Tokyo by capturing their first-ever gold medal in women’s volleyball, beating the Brazilians in straight sets.
Now, the United States will aim to get back to the final for the fourth time in the last five Olympics when they face Brazil in the semifinals. That match will take place on Friday, though a time has not yet been set.