site.btaBulgaria's Women Defeat World Champions Serbia in Five-Set Match in Ottawa

The Bulgarian national volleyball women's team led by Antonina Zetova defeated reigning world champions Serbia 3:2 (12:25, 25:19, 25:16, 10:25, 17:15) to record their second win in three matches in the Women's Volleyball Nations League.

The match, played in Ottawa, Canada, was marked by dramatic momentum shifts, with each of the first four sets being clearly dominated by one team.

The encounter didn’t start well for the Bulgarian team, who quickly fell behind by seven points. Serbia extended the lead to 16:6 and had no trouble closing the first set 25:12.

Bulgaria looked like a different team in the second set. The squad took a 12:9 lead and maintained control in the second half to win it 25:19.

The most convincing performance came in the third set. Bulgaria surged ahead 7:2 and later extended their lead to 22:11 before sealing the set 25:16 — putting themselves one set away from victory.

However, the momentum didn’t carry into the fourth. Serbia dominated from the start with an 8:0 run and closed the set comfortably at 25:10, sending the match into a decisive tiebreak.

Only in the fifth set did the game truly become a nail-biter. Bulgaria jumped out to a 6:2 lead, but Serbia quickly equalized at 6:6. The Bulgarians regained the lead and reached triple match point at 14:11. Serbia then pulled off four straight points to lead 15:14, threatening a dramatic comeback. But the Bulgarian team kept their composure and took the final three points to win the match 17:15.

Mikaela Stoyanova was Bulgaria’s top scorer with 18 points. Elitsa Atanasijevic added 15, and Nasya Dimitrova contributed 11. For Serbia, Aleksandra Uzelac led all scorers with 23 points, and Hena Kurtagic added 15.

The victory is Bulgaria’s first over Serbia in an official match since 2019. With the win, Bulgaria now has 6 points from three matches and sits 7th in the standings with two wins and one loss. Serbia, with two points and no wins, is in 15th place out of 18 teams.

Bulgaria's final match in the Ottawa tournament is scheduled for 21:30 local time today against the Netherlands, currently 11th in the standings with one win and two losses (4 points).