U.S. Women and Türkiye Renew Their Rivalry

ARLINGTON, Texas (July 14, 2023) – The U.S. Women’s National Team (11-2) will face a familiar foe with a new look on Saturday when they take on Türkiye (10-3) in the semifinals of the Volleyball Nations League at 7:30 p.m. CT at the College Park Center.

The winner will play the winner of the semifinal between Poland (11-2) and China (9-4).

The U.S. Women go into the match ranked No. 1 in the world. Türkiye is ranked third.

The U.S. Women have played Türkiye seven times since winning gold at the Tokyo Olympic Games and have won every match, including three friendly USAV Cup contests in California and two meetings at the 2022 World Championship.

Türkiye made changes over the winter, including hiring head coach Daniele Santarelli, the Italian who helped Serbia win the 2022 world championship.

Santarelli has moved Türkiye star Karakurt Ebrar from opposite to outside hitter. He has moved Cuban Melissa Vargas, now a citizen of Türkiye, to opposite.

‘Türkiye is playing really good volleyball,” U.S. Head Coach Karch Kiraly said. “They have increased their firepower from the last couple of years. They’re going to be a handful for sure. We are excited for the challenge.”

The U.S. Women beat Türkiye 3-2 when they played their preliminary round match on June 4.

“We’re looking to bring the best out of each other in what will be a really tough semifinal battle,” Kiraly said.

Get tickets for the final round at tickets.volleyballworld.com/arlington.

U.S. Women’s Preliminary Roster for 2023 VNL
No. Name (Pos., Ht., Hometown, College, USAV Region)

1 Micha Hancock (S, 5-11, Edmond, Okla., Penn State Univ., Oklahoma)
4 Justine Wong-Orantes (L, 5-6, Cypress, Calif., Univ. of Nebraska, Southern California)
5 Ali Frantti (OH, 6-1, Spring Grove, Ill., Penn State, Great Lakes)
6 Morgan Hentz (L, 5-9, Lakeside Park, Ky., Stanford Univ., Pioneer)
7 Lauren Carlini (S, 6-2, Aurora, Ill., Univ. of Wisconsin, Great Lakes)
11 Annie Drews (Opp, 6-4, Elkhart, Ind., Purdue Univ., Hoosier)
12 Jordan Thompson (Opp, 6-4, Edina, Minn., Univ. of Cincinnati, North Country)
15 Haleigh Washington (MB, 6-3, Colorado Springs, Colo., Penn State Univ., Rocky Mountain)
16 Dana Rettke (MB, 6-8, Riverside, Ill., Univ. of Wisconsin, Great Lakes)
23 Kelsey (Robinson) Cook (OH, 6-2, Manhattan Beach, Calif., Univ. of Nebraska, Southern California)
24 Chiaka Ogbogu (MB, 6-2, Coppell, Texas, Univ. of Texas, North Texas)
26 Asjia O’Neal (MB, 6-3, Southlake, Texas, Univ. of Texas, North Texas)
27 Avery Skinner (OH, 6-1, Katy, Texas, Baylor, Lone Star)
29 Khalia Lanier (OH, 6-2, Scottsdale, Ariz., Univ. of Southern California, Arizona)

Head Coach: Karch Kiraly
Assistant Coach: Tama Miyashiro
Second Assistant Coaches: Alfee Reft, Erin Virtue, Marv Dunphy
Performance Analyst: Rianne Verhoek
Physical Therapist/Athletic Trainer: Kara Kessans
Consultant Coach: Sue Enquist,
Team Manager: Dana Burkholder
Sports Dietitian: Shawn Hueglin
Strength & Conditioning Coach: Brandon Siakel

U.S. Women’s Schedule for the 2023 VNL
All matches will be broadcast on volleyballworld.tv

Week 1 at Antalya, Türkiye
May 31: USA def. Serbia 3-2 (25-20, 19-25, 21-25, 25-21, 15-12)
June 2: USA def. Italy 3-2 (25-16, 14-25, 22-25, 25-20, 15-9)
June 3: USA def. Korea 3-0 (25-16, 27-25, 25-11)
June 4: USA def. Türkiye 3-2 (25-22, 25-22, 22-25, 11-25, 15-9)

Week 2 at Brasilia, Brazil
June 13 USA def. Croatia 3-1 (17-22, 25-22, 25-18, 25-15)
June 15 USA def. Thailand 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-16)
June 17 Japan def. USA 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-19, 23-25, 15-6)
June 18 USA def Brazil 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-22)

Week 3 at Suwon, Korea
June 27 USA def Poland 3-2 (17-25, 25-15, 27-25, 28-30, 16-14)
June 28 USA def Bulgaria 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-17)
July 1 USA def Germany 3-1 (25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 25-13)
July 2 China def USA 3-2 (18-25, 25-19, 19-25, 25-20, 15-8)

Final Round on July 12-16 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas
(All times PT)
Quarterfinal
July 12 USA def Japan 3-1 (25-23, 25-21, 18-25, 25-18)
July 15 at 5:30 p.m. USA vs Türkiye
July 16 at 1 p.m. Bronze medal match
July 16 at 4:30 Gold medal match