China lost to Italy 0-3 (24-26, 16-25, 20-25) in a group match at the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on Saturday.

Though China were playing a much stronger franchise on paper, Chinese players were fearless on the field and took the offensive from the beginning. Their efforts helped China lead multiple times, but Italy exploded when their middle blocker Lubian Marina was serving. They scored five straight points to gain the lead and then extended it to three points (24-21).

Though China were resilient enough to tie the score 24-24, they couldn't stop Egonu Paola Ogechi from ending the set 26-24 with a counterstrike hit.

Italy's sharp serving not only continued to generate points directly in the second set, they also interrupted China's passes and, thus, contained China offensively. Such an unfavorable situation lasted until the end of this set and Italy won again to extend their lead to 2-0.

Having nowhere to go and with nothing to lose, Chinese players cast off their mental shackles and began a tit-for-tat attack battle against their Italian counterparts in the third set. As more players stood out to spike and block, China kept the score close until Italy again launched a new wave of forceful strikes through serving to win both the set and the match.

Italy have made the quarterfinals as the leader of Pool E. China will play their final match in this pool against Belgium on Sunday and will need a win to qualify for the quarterfinals.