CHAPTER 1 IN FOR THE KILL On July 1 2018 US volleyball player Michelle Bartsch-Hackley looked across the net She was facing the Turkish national team Bartsch-Hackley was an outside hitter These players work to get kills to win points for their team After two months of play there was only one set left to determine the champion Michelle Bartsch-Hackley was a three-time All-American for the University of Illinois 5
The US and Turkish teams were playing to win the first ever Volleyball Nations League VNL tournament They had outlasted 14 other national teams to reach the finals In total the 14 teams FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DE VOLLEYBALL The Fédération Internationale de Volleyball FIVB runs most international volleyball tournaments including the VNL FIVB includes more than 200 volleyball organizations around the world It was founded in 1947 It has hosted the World Championships for more than 50 years FIVB also helps decide which volleyball teams will compete at the Olympics Teams qualify by winning FIVB competitions 6
In 2018 Jordan Larson was the captain of Team USA had played more than 100 matches against one another The United States and Turkey were facing each other for the third time in the tournament Turkey had won the first match The United States had won the second In their third match they were tied 2 2 after four sets The fifth set would decide everything 7
