Recapping a loaded slate of beach volleyball on Day 6 the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The preliminary round of the beach volleyball tournament at the 2016 Rio Olympics concluded on Thursday, as the final 16 are now set in both the men’s and women’s competitions.
Team USA’s Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena faced their toughest test of the tournament but are heading to the last 16 after a three-set win over Italy to remain undefeated atop Pool C. The Americans withstood a rally from Poalo Nicolai and Daniele Lupo after cruising in the first set, narrowly winning the third 24-22, though the Italians made the lucky loser tournament.
On the women’s side, Brooke Sweat and Lauren Fendrick were eliminated after losing their third straight match of the tournament, this time to Russia. Ekaterina Birlova and Evgenia Ukolova outlasted the Americans in the third set with a 15-13 victory to finish third in Pool A and advance to the lucky losers tournament.
Cuba’s Nivaldo Diaz and Sergio Gonzalez completed their third straight upset, beating a team from Canada in straight sets. The 21st-seeded Cubans now have wins over the No. 3 and No. 8 teams in the tournament, and advance as Pool D champions, while Chaim Schalk and Ben Saxton made the lucky losers playoff.
Medal favorites Larissa Franca and Talita Antunes of Brazil finished off their undefeated Pool A campaign with an easy sweep of Poland. Monika Brzostek and Kinga Kolosinska are still headed to the knockout stages with a second place finish in the group.
The Brazilians also picked up a win on the men’s side, with Pedro Solberg and Evandro Goncalves winning for the first time in the tournament. Solberg and Goncalves pulled away 15-7 in the third set, and will advance out of Pool D despite the struggles in the preliminaries.
Mariusz Prudel and Grzegorz of Poland eliminated Chile from the tournament with a sweep to qualify for the lucky losers bracket later on that evening. Mexico’s Juan Virgen and Lambardo Ontiveros earned an easy 21-10, 21-10 victory over Tunisia to finish second in Pool C.
Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst of Germany continued to impress, holding off Italy 15-9 in the third set to win Pool D. Canada’s Sarah Pavan and Heather Bansley capped off an undefeated Pool E run with a easy sweep of a different German squad.
The start of the knockout stages closed out the evening, with two lucky loser matches in both the men’s and women’s tournaments. Italy and Poland kicked things off with a thriller, as Nicolai and Lupo closed out a three-set win 15-13 in the third set. Schalk and Saxton knocked off the other men’s team from Poland, rounding out the field of 16.
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In the women’s lucky loser tournament, Germany’s Karla Borger and Britta Buthe bounced back from the earlier loss with a dominating 21-13, 21-8 win over Venezuela. Ukolova and Birlova withstood a rally from the Czech Republic, winning 15-10 in the third set to complete the women’s field.
The beach volleyball tournament will resume tomorrow, with four Round of 16 matches for both the men and the women.