Hamamatsu, Japan, September 15, 2019 – The United States defeated Serbia 3-1 (23-25 25-17, 25-16, 25-15) in the second match on the second day of the FIVB Women’s World Cup at Hamamatsu Arena on Sunday.
USA coach Karch Kiraly: "We have very strong respect for the Serbian women’s programme. They’ve had a lot of very strong results over the last four or five years. We know many of their top players aren’t here after the European Championship, but I was impressed with the match they played against Brazil last night.
"We approached this match knowing it would be very difficult. They beat us in the first set, but the team did a nice job adjusting the block and defence and we are happy with the result. Karsta Lowe came in and gave us some great energy today and some great power, and she helped us change the match after we lost the first set."
USA captain Jordan Larson: "It was a great match for us. I thought both teams came out strong, but I think our block broke down in the first set. I thought we got our block and defence under control and started serving tough, and that’s what set the tone for the rest of the match."
Serbia coach Aleksandar Vladisavljev: We couldn’t do our best because we were very tired from yesterday’s match against Brazil. In my personal opinion, I think USA could take first place in this World Cup. Our team has a few injured players and some who are very tired from the European Championship, so I’m satisfied to win the first set against the very strong USA team. We just need to keep our focus in games like we did yesterday and as we did in the first set today."
Serbia player Jelena Blagojevic: "We played good volleyball today but we lost some energy after yesterday and didn’t have enough energy to push until the end. I’m proud of my team and the way they played, and I’m sure tomorrow will be better. It’s just our second match and we’re here to enjoy ourselves and improve our game and have fun. There are no problems. We finished the European Championship five days ago and travelled here two days ago. And we did what we set out to do - win the European Championship and qualify for the Olympics. This is an amazing group of players who have just finished five months together. Now, we just want to have some fun."