BEIJING — The U.S. men’s volleyball team earned a berth in the semifinals Wednesday by beating Serbia in five sets.
Outside hitter Riley Salmon seemed to float over the net as he sent the winning return rocketing into Serbia’s side of the court. The U.S. won 20-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 15-12, moving another step closer to its first appearance in an Olympic gold medal match in 20 years. It will play Russia in the semifinals Friday.
With each point, the Americans became more animated, shouting after each small victory and high-fiving each other as if the gold medal were on the line.
The U.S. team came into the Beijing Games hoping to win its first Olympic medal since 1992, when it won a bronze. The U.S. had won two Olympic golds in a row, in 1984 and 1988.
“Back in the day, it used to be USA-Russia, Russia-USA all the time, and we’re finally getting back to that level,” middle blocker Ryan Millar said. “We came in here ready for it. If we play as good as we can play, we can beat anybody.”
Russia advanced with a 3-1 victory over Bulgaria while Italy beat Poland by the same margin and Brazil topped China in straight sets.
