Published September 23, 2023, 2:10 p.m. ET
FILE – Canada’s Kiera Van Ryk shoots the ball during her team’s bronze medal victory over Cuba at the 2023 NORCECA Senior Women’s Volleyball Continental Championship in Quebec City in a handout photo on Sunday, Sept. 3, 2023. The Canadian women’s volleyball team scored on Saturday a 3-0 win over Mexico but failed in their bid to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Norceca, Mathieu Belanger, *MANDATORY CREDIT*
NINGBO, CHINA – The Canadian women’s volleyball team posted a 3-0 win (25-22, 25-22, 25-17) against Mexico on Saturday, but fell short in its bid to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics .
The Canadian attack was led by Kiera Van Ryk of Surrey, BC (17 points), Alexa Gray (13) and Hilary Howe (12), both of Calgary, and Emily Maglio of Coquitlam, BC (11).
Canada improved to 4-2 with the win, but it wasn’t enough to qualify for the Paris Games.
Serbia and the Dominican Republic, both with a record of 5-1, have all but secured the top two spots with a day to go in the Olympic qualifying tournament. Canada sits fourth in Pool A with 11 points, four points each behind Serbia and the Dominican Republic.
Only the top two teams in the group qualify and Canada can only get a maximum of three points in their final game against the Czech Republic on Sunday.
“We did what we had to do to come out victorious against Mexico today,” Canada coach Shannon Winzer said. “Every team has a difficult schedule with seven games in nine days, but I would argue that this is the toughest group in these Olympic qualifiers, so it wasn’t easy to take a three-set win today and we got the job.” completed. Sometimes that just has to be enough.”
The Netherlands, also 4-2 but one point ahead of Canada, will face the Dominican Republic on Sunday.
Six teams from the qualifying tournament will compete at next year’s Olympics alongside hosts France.
Five more countries can secure a spot via the world rankings next summer, meaning Canada can still qualify for Paris with a successful Volleyball Nations League season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2023.
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