FIVB Women's World Championship: Turkey beat Cuba 3-1

By Satuk Bugra Kutlugun

ANKARA (AA) - After beating Cuba 3-1 on Thursday, Turkey finished their first-round matches at the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championships in Japan up, with a win/loss record of 3-2.

Dubbed "Filenin Sultanları" (Sultans of the Net), the Turkish women handed Cuba their 12th straight loss in World Championship matches with set scores of 25-15, 25-14, 23-25, and 25-7 at Japan's Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center.

The Turkish national team were led by Meryem Boz (17 points), Hande Baladin (16 points), and Zehra Gunes (15 points).

The Turkish women beat Canada and Bulgaria with 3-0 set wins in their first two matches, but fell to China and Italy with the same scores in their last two matches.

The tournament, which began last Saturday and concludes on Oct. 20, brings together the world's 24 best teams to compete for the world champion title.