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FIVB Grand Slam Moscow, Russia
June 6 - June 11, 2012
May 7 - May 12, 2012
Juliana and Larissa win their first Gold of the season.
BRONZE MEDAL: 6th-seeded Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel of the Netherlands wins a titanic battle against 21st-seeded Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler of Germany, 21-14, 24-26, 16-14 to claim 3rd place in the tournament.
SEMIFINAL 1: Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti of Italy (10) defeated Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel of the Netherlands (6) 21-18 and 21-18.
SEMIFINAL 2: Julian Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca of Brazil (3) were victorious over Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler of Germany (21) by scores of 21-18 and 21-17.
ROUND 2: OK, now we know that something is seriously amiss. Our Golden Girls seem a little less golden each tournament, and instead more and more vulnerable. For the second tournament in a row, they stumble big-time in Round 2, this time losing to a team they know perhaps better than any other in the world -- their compatriots, Jen Kessy and April Ross. Final scores: 22-24 and once again 22-24. It is only the fifth time in 30 matches that Jen and April have ever beaten them. And so for the second week in a row they suffer the worst tournament result of their long and illustrious career on the sand together -- another 9th-place finish.
Two other SURPRISES: The shocking early dismissal of Misty and Kerri are not the only early surprises of this tournament. Perhaps even a larger shock is that the #1 seeds, Chen Xue and Xi Zhang of China, who already have two golds and a bronze in the first three tournaments of the year, are bumped off in three sets by the 7th-seeded upstart youngsters from the Czech Republic, Kristyna Kolocova and Marketa Slukova, 21-14, 17-21, 11-15.
And in perhaps the biggest surprise of all -- at least based on differential in seeding -- #2 Maria Antonelli of Talita Antunes of Brazil was upended in straight sets by 21st-seeded Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler of Germany, 19-21 and 13-21. Wow. Misty and Kerri keep talking about how much the rest of the world has been catching up, about how much parity there is. Guess that's not just polite rhetoric anymore, huh?
Jen and April barely survived Pool play with a third-place finish, going 1-2 including a forfeit due to injury in their third Pool match. In Round 1 they had a titanic struggle with the 25th-seeded German team of Jana Kohler and Julia Sude, finally prevailing by scores of 19-21, 29-27, and 15-10 in one hour even. Will their injury play a role in their Round 2 match against Misty and Kerri? We'll see.
Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Hanson fail to make it past Round 1, as they are very competitive in the first set before swept out of the tournament by the #2 seeds, Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes of Brazil, 24-26, 12-21. For the second straight week, they finish a disappointing 17th.
Compatriots Jen Kessy and April Ross also had their struggles, first defeating Daniela Gioria and Giulia Momoli of Italy 23-21, 21-12, but then losing in straight sets to the 21st-seeded German tandem of Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler, 17-21, 16-21. The third American team, Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Hanson, were schooled in both of their first two Pool matches, first going down against the 10th seed, Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti of Italy, 14-21, 19-21, and then were swept by the 7th-seeded Czech Republic pair of Kristyna Kolocova and Marketa Slukova, 16-21 and 14-21.
Aside from the American slip-ups, all of the other top-seeded tandems in each Pool ended up with 2-0 records on the fist day of the Main Draw.
April 30 - May 5, 2012
Chen Xue and Xi Zhang win their second gold this season.
3rd PLACE: Juliana and Larissa maintain their composure after losing their Semifinal and claim third place, barely squeaking by the Dutch tandem of Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel in a 29-27 barnburner first set, and then coasting to the sweep by a far more comfortable margin in the second set, 21-13.
SEMIFINAL #1: Top-seeded Chen Xue and Xi Zhang of China rather handily defeat 3rd-seeded Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca of Brazil in a sweep, 21-13 and 21-17. Chen and Xi have now defeated the Brazilian greats in three out of their last five matches.
SEMIFINAL #2: The gold medalists from last week in Sanya, Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes of Brazil, take down the 8th-seeded tandem Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel of the Netherlands in a sweep, 21-18, 21-18.
The up and coming Spanish team that defeated Misty and Kerri in Round 2 were themselves taken down in Round 3 by the fast-emerging Dutch team of Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel in a 56-minute, three-match brouhaha 21-16, 19-21, 16-14.
ELIMINATION ROUND 2: Oh no, oh no! What's going on? After completely dominating in Pool play, Misty and Kerri stumble against the 16th-seeded tandem of Elsa Baquerizo and Liliana Fernandez Steiner from Spain in Round 2, unaccountably falling in three: 13-21, 21-14, 10-15. They finish a dismal 9th in the tournament, which is their first finish as low as ninth since July, 2002. Should we be worried?
Jen and April fare much better as they take care of business against the iconic veterans from Australia, Natalie Cook and Tamsin Hinchley, by scores of 21-19 and 21-17. Unfortunately they next must take on the Brazilian greats, Juliana and Larissa, against whom they are 4-18 in matches lifetime. Their matches, however, tend to be donnybrooks, with almost half of them going three sets. Go get 'em, Jen and April!
Jen and April follow suit, also finishing up Pool with a 3-0 record. Their bye into Elimination Round 2 results in an interesting matchup with the veteran Australian team of Natalie Cook and Tamsin Hinchley. Natalie, now 37, won the bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the gold medal on home turf at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, both with former partner Kerri Pottharst. Natalie and Tamsin upset the 6th-seeded Italian pair Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti in Eliminatin Round 1, so Jen and April had better bring their "A" game!
Misty and Kerri's Round 2 opponents, Elsa Baquerizo and Liliana Fernandez Steiner, took down Lauren and Brooke in a tough Round 1 three-setter, 14-21, 26-24, 11-15. That leaves them with a disappointing 17th-place finish in the tournament.
Jen and April also go 2-0, but they are seriously challenged in the 2nd round, getting spanked in the first game and barely surviving a marathon second game before prevailing against Vassiliki Arvaniti and Maria Tsiartsiani of Greece, 12-21, 32-30, and 15-9 in 1:06.
The third U.S. entrant, Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Hanson, were unaccountably trounced in their first Pool match by Heather Bansley and Elizabeth Maloney of Canada, 12-21, 15-21. In their second match, they came back to comparably dominate the 31st-seeded team of Andrezza "Rtvelo" Martins and Cristine "Saka" Santanna from Georgia, 21-17 and 21-11. But now, probably in order to survive, they must go up against the gold medal winners at Sanya, Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes of Brazil.
SURPRISES!: Juliana and Larissa are stunned by the 30th-seeded Finnish twin sister tandem of Emilia Nystrom and Erika Nystrom, 18-21 and 24-26. And they are hardly dominant in getting by 19th-seeded Barbara Hansel and Sara Montagnolli of Austria in three sets, 21-17, 19-21, 15-11. Have they become complacent? An injury perhaps?
The newest giant-killers, 27th-seeded Madelein Meppelink and Sophie van Gestel of the Netherlands, found yet another high-seed to their liking, taking down 6th-seeded Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti of Italy, 21-13, 19-21, 15-8.
April 24 - April 29, 2012
Misty and Kerri and some other top teams did not compete in this tournament.
* First FIVB
Tournament of
2012 *
FIVB Open in
Brasilia, Brazil
April 15 - April 20, 2012
Juliana and Larissa also disappoint, with a 4th place finish.
Chen Xue and Xi Zhang of China -- the bronze medalists in Beijing -- get the gold.
| FINALS:
In a sweep,
Chen Xue and
Xi Zhang of
China decisively take down
Maria Antonelli and
Talita Antunes
of Brazil for the gold medal, 21-17 and 21-15. 3rd PLACE: Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca of Brazil take a header against Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti of Italy, falling in three sets 14-21, 21-17, and 13-15. SEMIFINAL #1: Xue-Zhang Xi of China defeat Juliana-Larissa of Brazil in a very close three-setter, 21-17, 16-21, 17-15. SEMIFINAL #2: Talita-Antonelli of Brazil defeat Cicolari-Menegatti of Italy in another tough three-game match. 20-22, 21-18, 15-11.  CONTENDER'S BRACKET -- ROUND 6:
Juliana and Larissa bump off our
Golden Girls for the seventh time in their last eight
head-to-head matches, narrowing Misty and Kerri's overall lead
in lifetime match victories to 13-10. The final scores
were a nail-bitingly close 13-21, 26-24, 13-15. Misty and
Kerri finish a disappointing 5th in the tournament. It is
only the fifth time in 71 international tournaments that they
have finished as low as 5th. In those 71 tournaments, they
have claimed a remarkable 38 gold medals -- a 54% winning
percentage. They have been in the final four an equally
remarkable 60 times out of their 71 FIVB tournaments, a
percentage of 85%. Juliana and Larissa have also been
quite spectacular, winning 42 golds in their 97 tournaments
together, a winning percentage of 43%, and getting to the final
four in 79 out of their 97 tournaments, a percentage of 81%.After their loss, Kerri was quoted as saying: “I don’t mind at all losing this tournament. Everything we need to work on we saw in this tournament and now we will go and work on it.” The work continues, as London beckons. |
|
ROUND 4: Oops! Misty and Kerri stumble
against the 4th seeds, Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes,
getting swept 18-21, 17-21. They will now more than likely
have to take on Juliana and Larissa in one of the concluding
Contender's Bracket matches in order to get into the Semifinals.
To get to the matchup with Misty and Kerri, Juliana and Larissa must first -- for the second time in the tournament -- get by the surprise team of this tournament, the very young, 31st-seeded Madelein Meppelink and Sophie van Gestel of the Netherlands. Since losing to Juliana and Larissa in Round 1, Madelein and Sophie have won four straight matches, including over 6th-seeded Vivian Cunha and Taiana Lima of Brazil, 14-21, 21-16, and 15-10. Jen Kessy and April Ross were eliminated by the other and better known Dutch pair, 8th-seeded Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel, in three sets, 12-21, 21-15, 10-15. That left them with a disappointing 5th-place finish in the tournament. ROUND 3: As usual, Misty and Kerri had a challenging match with the Goller-Ludwig team from Germany, but they eventually prevailed in three games, 18-21, 21-14, 15-12. They will now face 4th-seeded Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes of Brazil, against whom they hold a 3-1 lifetime match advantage. The winner will go onto the Semifinals. See PREVIEW. Jen Kessy and April Ross were upended by that same Antonelli-Antunes tandem in a match that also went three sets, 18-21, 21-19, 11-15. They will now face the 8th-seeded and double-Gold winners from last year, the Dutch team of Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel in Round 4 of the Contender's Bracket. See PREVIEW. Jen and April must win this match and then two more in order to get into the Semifinals. That's a very tough road. But it's a road that Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Hanson would have loved to have to travel, as they fell in three sets to Louise Bawden and Becchara Palmer of Australia, 21-13, 17-21, and 11-15. That left them with a 13th place finish in the tournament. BIG SURPRISE!: Juliana and Larissa -- the number one team in the world (ahem... at the moment) -- took a surprise header in Round 3, losing in straight sets to the Italian upstarts, Greta Cicolari and Marta Menegatti 17-21 and 18-21. That will leave the Brazilian greats -- the main threats to Misty's and Kerri's designs on a third straight Olympic gold medal -- needing to win their next three matches in order to make it to the Semifinals. |
|
ROUND 1
and ROUND 2: In their first matches of the 2012 season, #1
seeds Misty and Kerri first sweep the Brits,
Lucy Boulton
and Denise Johns
21-18, 21-15, and then do the same to the Canadian tandem of
Heather Bansley
and Elizabeth
Maloney, 22-20 and 21-13. They will have hardier
competition in Round 3 from ninth-seeded
Sara Goller
and Laura Ludwig
of Germany. Here is a
PREVIEW of their match. Although Misty and Kerri are
6-0 against them, their matches are usually very tough.
Their compatriots, #5-seeded Jennifer Kessy and April Ross, also sailed through the first two Rounds, but will be seriously challenged in Round 3 by the fourth-seeded Brazilians, Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes See the PREVIEW. Jennifer and April hold a 10-5 lifetime advantage against them. The 13th-seeded U.S. team, Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Hanson, took a tumble in Round 1 against the very tough German tandem of Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler, but stayed in the competition by defeating the 29th seeds from the Netherlands. They will next take on Louise Bawden and Becchara Palmer of Australia in the second round of the Contender's Bracket. Brittany Hochevar, Misty's successor at the setter position at Long Beach State and one of my favorites, along with her partner Angie Akers did not fare so well. After surviving the Qualifiers (as the #2 seeds), in Round 1 they unaccountably were decimated by the 21st-seeded Greek team of Vassiliki Arvaniti and Maria Tsiartsiani, 11-21 and 4-21 (!), and then did better but still fell to the new team of Raquel Pelluci and Maria Clara Salgado 16-21, 21-15, 7-15 in the Contender's Bracket. They finished 25th in the tournament. (Maria Clara usually plays with her sister Carolina, who is preggers at the moment.) |
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