June 07, 2026 : Canada ended week one of Volleyball Nations League on Sunday with a thrilling five-set match with Japan at the Centre Videotron in Quebec City, Quebec.

Canada lost the battle 2-3 (27-29, 20-25, 25-23, 30-28,12-15).

"There is a level of disappointment for not being able to finish out that game, but also a level of being really proud," said Kiera Van Ryk, who had three aces today and is now second in VNL all-time serving ranking with 78 serve points in 54 matches played.

"Being down against a team like Japan, it’s very difficult to come back, and generally throughout this week we were down a lot and we lost the first game, but our ability to come back and fight is something that we can take forward into the rest of the summer; it’s not easy to be down and it’s not easy to be down against Japan as they are an incredibly technical and a very gifted team. Team Japan works very hard and to be down two sets, and to come back to force it to a fifth set, not many teams have that level of fight. Even though we lost, I’m still proud of my team."

The match had its share of excitement and drama, including Canada coming back from two sets down to force the tie-break, and Canada’s coach Giovanni Guidetti receiving a red card for his protest against a call in the final set.

Overall, Canada led in attack points (70-65), blocking (15-3) and aces (8-7), but made significantly more errors than Japan (44-21). Van Ryk led all scoring with 28 points. Yukiko Wada and Mayu Ishikawa led scoring for Japan with 23 points apiece.

"Japan’s a very difficult team to play against and we didn’t start well, so to be able to come back and push them to five is a positive,” said assistant coach Carolyn O’Dwyer. "We need to do a better job controlling our side, there are some unforced errors we’d like to take back for sure, but also there are some really good things to take out of this week and the support of the crowd was awesome…. In general we got better with every match. We want to keep growing and improving with every game throughout VNL leading up the Olympic qualifier (in August)."

Canada ends this week with two wins, including a 3-0 win over USA and a 3-1 victory over France, and two losses. Japan went undefeated in Quebec.

Later this month, Canada’s women’s team plays in Thailand in week two of VNL. Ottawa will host men’s week-one action beginning on June 10 at the Arena at TD Place.

Week 1 Roster (Quebec City)
Emily Maglio (C), Coquitlam, BC
Brie Fransen, Langley, BC
Courtney Baker, Bridgewater, NS
Alexa Gray, Calgary, AB
Hilary Johnson, Calgary, AB
Andrea Mitrovic, Etobicoke, ON
Abby Guezen, Sherwood Park, AB
Kiera Van Ryk, Surrey, BC
Anna Smrek, Welland, ON
Jazmine White, Oshawa, ON
Nyadholi (Dholi) Thokbuom, Calgary, AB
Jessica Andrews, Guelph, ON
Kacey Jost, St. Albert, AB
Kat Georgiadis, Toronto, ON
Olivia Andulajevic, Victoria, BC

Staff:
Head Coach: Giovanni Guidetti
Assistant Coach: Vincenzo Mallia
Assistant Coach: Carolyn O’Dwyer
Assistant Coach: TJ Sanders
Scout/Analyst: Fatih Yagci
Strength and Conditioning Coach: Giovanni Miale
Lead Physiotherapist: Kevin Valcke
Physiotherapist: Sandy Heming
Team Lead: Kelvin Ma
High Performance Director: Shannon Winzer

Tournament website: https://en.volleyballworld.com/volleyball/competitions/volleyball-nations-league

VNL Quebec is proudly presented by Desjardins.

Photo: Volleyball World

Volleyball Canada Media Contact:
Jackie Skender
jskender@volleyball.ca
Mobile: 613-794-7676