Poland Beats Ukraine in Four Sets to Reach VNL Semifinal

Defending champions Poland claimed the final semifinal spot at the men's Volleyball Nations League Finals with a 3-1 win over Ukraine in Thursday's quarterfinal in Ningbo, China. The final score was 25-22, 22-25, 25-20, 25-17, marking Poland's seventh consecutive semifinal appearance in VNL history.

Wilfredo Leon led Poland with nine points in the first set as the team controlled the scoreboard throughout, closing it out 25-22 on a block by Bartlomiej Lemanski. Ukraine responded with a stronger second set, winning 25-22 behind an 18-year-old Maksym Tonkonoh's block against Leon. Poland regained control in the third set behind Bartlomiej Boladz, winning 25-20, then pulled away in a one-sided fourth set, closing the match 25-17.

Boladz was the match's top scorer with 24 points, hitting at 66% efficiency and adding five kill blocks. Speaking to VBTV after the match, he said: "Tough game! Ukraine is a good team. But most important is the win. I hope the next game will be better, because I think our level was not like always. This season, Ukraine showed that they can play very well and won against some top teams."

Leon added 16 points for Poland. Ukraine's Vasyl Tupchii led all scorers on his side with 13 points, and Dmytro Yanchuk added 13 as well. Ukraine's captain Yurii Semeniuk, who finished with 10 points, said afterward: "It was a difficult game today, but I am so happy for my team. We played, we tried, we did… and I think we showed everything that we have today. I love this team!"

Poland will face Slovenia in Saturday's semifinal at 15:00 local time.