U.S. women wins Olympic volleyball qualifying opener in Lincoln

This is the fourth try at the Olympics in Winters’ 13 years on the national team.

Dominican Republic players celebrate scoring a point against Canada during a NORCECA Olympic qualifying tournament match Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Lincoln, Neb.

The four-nation tournament victor will earn NORCECA’s berth into the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The second- and third-place NORCECA finishers on the weekend will advance to at-large last-chance world Olympic qualifiers to be staged in May.

Team Canada has improved a lot in the last two Olympic cycles, no doubt about it. The time has come to be back to the major competition in the world, 24 years after their last participation, when the Canadians finished a modest 10th place in a 12-team competition. Jordan Larson and Kelsey Robinson, who both played collegiate volleyball at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, added 10 and nine points respectively.

If the Americans had won a qualifying spot in the World Cup last fall, they would not have come back together for workouts for the Olympics until May. “But that’s not to say we don’t want this (qualify for Rio) badly. We have to take the good out of this and keep fighting because it’s just the start of the tournament”. “That ride home was real hard”, Robinson said. “It’s the first time we have played a qualifier at home, which is definitely an advantage, even though this is a gym with which we are not familiar”, said Winters, by phone from Edmonton.

Kiraly is substituting liberally at this stage given his deep team featuring so many players he trusts to deliver on the big stage, and also to regularly give opponents new, varying looks. It’s safe to say Team USA will have the crowd in their pocket, especially with three former Huskers being represented on the roster.

“I remember when I was young and going through the process, I just thought, ‘Oh, my gosh, the Olympics.’ In reality, it’s really no different than what we do every single year”, Larson said. Sport Canada told Own The Podium in 2010 to set aside $6 million annually specifically for teams, so they would have base funding regardless of their medal potential. “It’s 14 guys and not one person that will win these games for us anymore”. Tori Dixon punched in seven points.

After the World Cup miss in late August into early September, the USA players have largely been away from each other with their club teams overseas.

Outside hitter Kim Hill and opposite Karsta Lowe also return for the US after successful performances at the World Grand Prix this summer in Omaha. Canada defeated all of those teams en route to winning its first NORCECA men’s continental championship gold medal at Cordoba, Mexico, in October. If they don’t, the Americans would have a final chance to qualify at a playoff tournament in May.

The women’s squad is heading to the U.S.to compete in the 2016 NORCECA Olympic Qualification Tournament.