Iran scored a 25-19, 25-18, 25-22 win over Australia to finish in seventh place in the AVC Cup for Women Monday at the Philsports Arena.
Aytak Salamatgharamaleki led the Iranians with 15 points, while Mahsa Saberi had three service aces to finish with 12 points.
Italian coach Alessandra Kampedelli was satisfied with the performance of the players after the Iranians tallied two wins in the tournament hosted by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation.
“I think for us, it was a very very very great experience for us,” said Kampedelli, who is handling Iran for five months. “Now we have to work more.”
Stef Weiler and Kara Inskip had 10 points apiece while Annelies Jones and Caitlin Tipping each scored eight points for the Volleyroos, who settled for eighth spot in the continental meet.
Coming off a tough five-set loss to the Philippines Sunday, Australia was struggling in the one-hour, 33-minute match.
“Mad respect for the Philippines on the way they played their defense and their power hitting was super impressive. We couldn’t hang on,” said Volleyroos captain Kelly Lean.
“We were bit disappointed with today. We probably played a little bit better than that. We played a big game yesterday and we played a tough opponent in Iran, they really played very well so it’s hard to match after a tough loss,” the Australian setter added.
