Ukraine brought their campaign in women’s EuroVolley 2021 qualification Pool B to an end on a high note. To mark his 55th birthday, coach Vladimir Orlov’s players mastered a 3-0 (25-6, 25-19, 25-9) victory over Georgia in Tbilisi to finish pool runners-up on a 4-2 win-loss record and leave the hosts winless at the bottom of the table.

Ukraine had already secured their tickets to EuroVolley 2021, so coach Vladimir Orlov gave most of his main players some rest during Sunday’s game with Georgia, and those on the court an opportunity to shine, which they were keen to take advantage of. They stormed into the match on a 6-0 run and never looked back. With two aces, a kill block and three spiking attempts, all successful, including the set winner for 25-6, Ukraine’s playmaker Daria Velykokon was the best scorer of the set. Surprisingly, Georgia reacted with a 4-0 start in set two, increasing their lead to seven at 10-3. However, an amazing series of 10 in a row for Ukraine, on Kateryna Dudnyk’s serve, flipped the score to 13-10 their way. The home side did not give up and continued to fight, but to no avail. Ukrainian opposite Anna Kharchynska produced three stuff blocks, including the set closer at 25-19. She went on to pile up the match high of 13 points, as Ukraine continued to dominate in set three. Middle blocker Maryna Mazenko hammered an overpass to close the game emphatically at 25-9.