FIVB Moscow Grand Slam - Articles

Pool play has been completed in the Moscow Grand Slam, the next-to-last Olympic qualification tournament, so let's see how this affects the race for the second U.S. Olympic spot. On the women's side, Kerri Walsh Jennings/April Ross have cozily qualified with their 12 finishes and 5,790 points, currently ranked No. 4. In their sights is the No. 3 team of Laura Ludwig/Kira Walkenhorst at 6,000 points. Walsh/Ross' lowest finishes are 80 (once) and 120 (twice). If Walsh/Ross finish fifth or better they will overtake Ludwig/Walkenhorst this week. If Walsh/Ross win both Moscow and Hamburg they could actually finish first in Olympic rankings if neither Brazilian team advances their score by more than 50 points (Larissa Franca/Talita Antunes) or 120 points (Agatha Bednarczuk/Barbara Seixas). Due to the FIVB seeding system, however, they would only be seeded second to the host country by FIVB rule. Walsh/Ross completed their pool play in Moscow with a 3-0 record, dropping two sets. Their point ratio of 1.141 was qualified them for a bye in the first round of playoffs. No. 3 Walsh/Ross defeated No. 30 Nadezda Makroguzova/Olga Motrich of Russia 19-21, 21-14, 15-10, No. 19 Eduarda Lisboa/Eliza Maia of Brazil 18-21, 21-17, 16-14, and No. 14 Isabelle Forrer/Anouk Verge-Depre of Switzerland 31-29, 21-16. Walsh/Ross will face either No. 22 Emily Day/Jennifer Kessy of the USA or No. 29 Yulia Abalakina/Ekaterina Syrtseva of Russia in the second round of playoffs. Emily Day/Jennifer Kessy finished pool with a 1-2 match record, 3-4 in sets. Their point ratio was exactly 1.000 (won and lost...

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