Olympics | Surprises in rear mirror, showdowns in headlights

Women's Olympic indoor volleyball field starts to sort out after first week

Two pools. 18 pool matches down, 12 more to go. By Sunday we’ll know which eight teams will advance to next week’s single-elimination medal rounds.

USA celebrates against China
-photo by David Weitl

USA entered the 2012 Olympics ranked #1 in the world, and has only enhanced that status with three impressive wins against three strong teams. The Americans are in Pool B, where 4 of the 6 teams (USA, Brazil, Turkey & China) reached the final round of the 2012 World Grand Prix (won by USA).

But teams have played just three matches so far, and those that reach the medal round will play five more. With lots of volleyball still ahead, here are the surprises to date and the future matches to savor.

SURPRISES

Brazil: The defending Olympic champions have fallen far from their top world ranking just a year ago. Volleyball-mad Brazilians have questioned the decision not to include long-time setter Fabiola on the Olympic roster. They may also question why middle blocker Fabiana gets so much playing time. If the medal round were to begin today, Brazil would miss the cut. It should beat last-place Serbia Sunday, so Friday’s China match against China could decide the team’s fate. If they don’t get past pool play, expect huge changes before Rio de Janeiro hosts the 2016 games.

South Korea: Outside hitter Yeon-Koung Kim is one of the world’s best players, and she’s nearly been unstoppable in these Olympics. After losing 3-1 to USA in a match that was closer than the final score indicates, the Koreans beat Serbia and then dismantled Brazil. If they beat Turkey tomorrow, they’ll make the medal round, with a telling final pool match against China on Sunday.

Great Britain: As the host country, the 69^th-ranked Brits got an automatic berth and an easier pool. On Tuesday, they outlasted 16^th-ranked Algeria (3-2), a match where Washington alumni Janine Sandell displayed power and grace. One more win, and Britain advances, where Sandell would face former UW teammates Courtney Thompson and Tama Miyashiro in the quarterfinals.

Megan Hodge: The former Penn State star didn’t play a minute against either South Korea or China, then came in with a flourish against China. When Hodge, Foluke Akinradewo and Destinee Hooker are on the front line (with Logan Tom serving), USA can expect to go on some serious scoring runs.

COMING UP

Friday:

China vs. Brazil. If the defending Olympic champions lose, they may not advance to the medal round. Ouch.

South Korea vs. Turkey. If Korea wins, it sets up a second-place showdown with China. If Turkey wins, it makes Brazil’s situation even more perilous.

Great Britain vs. Dominican Republic. With a win, the Brits all but ensure a spot in the medal round, with USA as the likely quarterfinals opponent.

Sunday:

Russia vs. Italy. Both teams may enter this match undefeated, with top Pool A seed at stake.

South Korea vs. China. Could be a signature opportunity for the Koreans.

Next week:

The top four teams in each pool advance to the quarterfinals, with ties broken by number of sets won and lost (among other tiebreakers.) The top seed from each pool faces the fourth seed from the opposite pool, while the two seeds face the three seeds.

Pool A

		WINS	LOSSES
1	Russia	Gr. Britain (3-0) Dom. Rep. (3-1) Algeria (3-0)
2	Italy	Dom. Rep. (3-1) Japan (3-1) Gr. Britain (3-0)
3	Japan	Algeria (3-0) Dom. Rep. (3-0)	Italy (1-3)
4	Great Britain	Algeria (3-2)	Russia (0-3) Italy (0-3)
5	Algeria		Japan (0-3) Gr. Britain (2-3) Italy (0-3)
6	Dominican Republic		Italy (1-3) Russia (1-3) Japan (0-3)

Pool B

		WINS	LOSSES
1	USA	Korea (3-1) Brazil (3-1) China (3-1)
2	South Korea	Serbia (3-1) Brazil (3-0)	USA (1-3)
3	China	Serbia (3-1) Turkey (3-1)	USA (0-3)
4	Turkey	Serbia (3-0)	Brazil (2-3) China (1-3)
5	Brazil	Turkey (3-2)	USA (1-3) Korea (0-3)
6	Serbia		China (1-3) Korea (1-3) Turkey (0-3)