VakifBank Istanbul's Özge Nur Yurtdagülen (left) and top scorer Lonneke Sloetjes celebrate a point in their encounter with Bangkok Glass
Manila, Philippines, October 21, 2016 - Vakifbank Istanbul formally made it to the semifinals of the 2016 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship after a 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-18) win over Bangkok Glass at the Mall of Asia Arena on Friday.
The 2013 champions were hardly bothered by the Thai club’s occasional forays and instead imposed discipline on defence and firepower, making 57 attacks compared to 33 by Bangkok Glass.
Vakifbank Istanbul will thus join unbeaten Volero Zurich in the semifinals from Pool B, facing the top team from Pool A in the semifinals.
Lonneke Sloetjes score 17 points for Vakifbank, which also got a big boost from Godze Kirdar who accounted for 11 markers.
Bangkok Glass, which relied on Wilavan Apinyapong’s 14-point output, will finish group stage fourth in Pool B.