(By Steve Hopkins)
Group Stage Concludes for USA Women
Team USA finishes the group stage in fifth position. They will advance into knock-out rounds with the other teams placing 4th, 5th, and 6th where they will playoff for positions 13-24. As in the group stage, Team USA will be the underdog in facing most of the other teams. However, these should all be very competitive matches and should provide Team USA another opportunity to showcase their strengths.
The top three in each group advance into a knock-out draw to determine the overall champion. China, Japan, Romania, and Korea have received byes and will have the easiest path to the finals. The other teams in the championship draw are Germany, Austria, Hong Kong, Taipei, Romania, Korea, Russia, DPR Korea, Singapore, and Ukraine.
Most of the top seeds advanced as expected, but a few teams were surprises. Ukraine finished ahead of Hungary (a No. 4 seed over a No. 3 seed). And DPR Korea entered their group as the fifth seed but finished first.
Visit ButterflyOnline.com for updates throughout the event.
