Adelaide, Australia, May 30, 2015 - For the second time in a row Italy defeated home side Australia. The visitors once again proved too solid for the error-prone Volleyroos as they won 3-1 (25-20, 25-21, 23-25, 25-23) on Saturday.
Australia took the first set when the two teams met yesterday and the home fans were hoping for a similar start today. It was not to be, however, as a series of Australian errors gave Italy a 16-11 lead in the first set. Italy held on to the lead to win the set comfortably 25-20. The second set started with both teams going back and forth before Italy earned a three-point advantage at the second technical time-out. A few errors from Thomas Edgar at the end of the set proved crucial as they allowed the visitors to take a two-set lead.
The home side was still determined to challenge Italy today and they got in front early on in the third set. It was not long before the visitors levelled the score, though, and the fans were treated to a thrilling finish. Much to the delight of the home crowd, it was the Volleyroos who handled the nerves better as they closed out the set at 25-23. The final set was a closely-contested affair with Italy managing to hold on to a narrow lead for the better part of the set. In the end, Australia made a simple mistake in defence to hand their opponents the winning point.
Italy, who brought a very inexperienced team to Australia this weekend, will be very happy with the two wins and six points they scored in Adelaide. Team Australia, on the other hand, will have a lot to think about, as a high error count in both matches left them unable to fight for a victory.
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