RIO DE JANEIRO – Tyler Sanders hit the winning ace to lift the Canadian men’s volleyball team into the quarter-finals at the Rio Olympic Games with a 3-1 victory over Italy on Monday.
Set scores were 25-23, 25-17, 16-25 and 25-21 in the final preliminary-round game for both teams.
The win, Canada’s first over Italy in men’s volleyball in 16 matches, put the Canadians into second place in Pool A with nine points.
Canada, ranked 12th in the world, got off to a stunning start at the Olympic tournament with a straight sets win over No. 5 United States. The Canadians lost 3-1 to Brazil and 3-0 to France before downing Mexico 3-0 in their other preliminary-round games.
Italy, ranked fourth, was undefeated in its first four matches in Rio. The Italians finish atop Pool A with 12 points.
France played top-ranked Brazil later Monday. The match will decide who Canada will play in the quarter-finals.