KUCHING: Sarawak men’s and women’s teams have set a positive tone for the 65th MSN-Malaysia National Volleyball Championship held in Johor Bahru from Oct 17 to 19.
In the women’s category, Sarawak fought hard to overcome Kuala Lumpur in a thrilling five-set battle, winning 25-19, 25-13, 18-25, 22-25, 17-15.
They later continued their momentum with a dominant 3-0 victory over Johor (25-19, 25-12, 25-19).
Women’s team coach Sanong Kulchim said the team was fortunate to come away with the win despite not performing at their best in the first match.
“The first and second sets were relatively easy, but in the third set, I changed the formation because the opponents had already figured out our style of play,”
“The players needed time to adapt to the new setup, and in the fourth set, we lost focus despite leading comfortably. Fortunately, the team managed to pull through in the fifth set,”he told Sarawak Tribune today (Oct 18).
Sanong also expressed concern over the competition venue, noting that direct sunlight affected the players’ visibility during matches.
He added that he hopes to see better focus and consistency from his players in the upcoming fixtures.
Meanwhile, in the men’s division, Sarawak delivered a commanding performance in Group B, defeating Pahang in straight sets — 25-14, 25-13, 25-13, to mark a confident start to their campaign.
Head coach Pang Sii Chuong described the victory as a solid start to the tournament.
“It was a good starter for our first match against Pahang. All players were given the chance to play to assess their individual performances in a real tournament setting compared to training back in Sibu.
“This team has three senior players, including myself, supporting 11 Malaysia Games (SUKMA) longlisted players in this Open category tournament,” he said.
Both Sarawak teams will continue their matches today as they aim to go further in the national championship.
