Zhu Ting (C) cheers with teammates for a match point added to her side Tianjin against Beijing during the Chinese Women's Volleyball Super League semifinal in Tianjin, China, December 24, 2019.
Zhu Ting again displayed dominance as she led her team sweep past Beijing 25-15, 25-19, 25-23 in the best-of-three semifinals of the Chinese Women's Volleyball Super League in Tianjin on Tuesday.
The Chinese ace spiker Zhu, who sustained an injury to her right wrist at the FIVB Women's Club World Championship two weeks ago, led Tianjin with a game-high of 23 points.
From 0-2 down, the reigning champion Beijing once led 15-11 in the third set but was unable to hold its advantage as the hosts rallied for every kill to seal the match eventually.
Li Yingying scored 17 points for Tianjin while Rourke Rachel and Bartsch Michelle had eight points each for Beijing.
Wang Xinyao #15 of Shanghai blocks a shot from Guangdong Evergrande players during the Chinese Women's Volleyball Super League semifinal in Shanghai, China, December 24, 2019.
In another semifinal in Shanghai, the home team beat Guangdong Evergrande 3-1, in nail-biting four sets, 25-23, 29-27, 24-26, 32-30.
Shanghai took the first two sets 25-23 and 29-27, before Guangdong, who finished 7th at the FIVB Women's Club World Championship early this month, pulled one back by 26-24.
After a 30-30 tie in the fourth set, Shanghai added another two points following a Louisa Lippmann spike and sealed the match thanks to an unforced error from Guangdong.
Lippmann scored a game-high 25 points, with Jordan Larson adding 19 for Shanghai, while Chen Peiyan led Guangdong with 23 points.
Game 2 is scheduled for Saturday.
(With input from Xinhua)