Venezuela celebrate after their win over Chile on Friday
Rio de Janeiro, May 22, 2015 – Argentina and Venezuela clinched berths in the FIVB Men’s World Cup on Friday by winning their semifinal matches in the South American qualifiers for the World Cup.
Favourites Argentina beat hosts Colombia 3-0 (25-16, 25-23, 26-24) in one hour and 22 minutes to remain unbeaten in the tournament in Cali.
In a repeat of the group match on Thursday, Colombia made a much closer game of it, backed by their wildly enthusiastic fans. But in the end, they were let down by a lack of control in service and receiving.
In the other semifinal, Venezuela beat Chile 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 26-24) in an hour and 24 minutes. The top scorer in the match was Maximo Montoya of Venezuela with 13 points, while opposing team striker Sebastian Gevert scored 12 points.
While Chile failed to make it to the World Cup, they left with the respect of their opponents as against Venezuela they once again showed their steadfastness in defence and blocking.
“We are very happy with this victory,” Venezuela opposite Kervin Pinerua said. “Chile made us work hard with a good game, but we were able to make it in three sets. Now we will have the World League to help us prepare and fight for the World Cup. I congratulate Chile because they have shown great improvement in their game.”