China beats Italy to win third straight match in women's VNL

ANKARA -- China's national women's volleyball team beat Italy 3-1 on Saturday in Pool 2 of the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Nations League (VNL) in Turkey.

China sealed the victory 25-13, 20-25, 25-22, 25-18 at the Ankara Sports Hall, claiming its third consecutive victory since the league started.

China's outside hitter Li Yingying scored 21 points and opposite Gong Xiangyu added 17. Alice Degradi had a game-high 23 points for Italy.

With the victory, China now sits second in the VNL standings after Brazil, who has also a three-game winning streak.

China started the 2022 VNL campaign on Wednesday with a comfortable 3-1 win over the Netherlands and then beat Turkey 3-1 on Friday. China will now face Thailand on Sunday.

In the other game in Pool 2 on Saturday, Belgium edged Thailand 25-22, 18-25, 23-25, 25-21, 15-13.

The women's VNL kicked off on May 31, with the finals to be held in Ankara from July 13 to 17.