Greece W vs North Macedonia W

North Macedonia stunned the Greeks by taking the opening set 25-23, capitalising on a slow start from the favourites. Greece had led early in the set but a run of unforced errors allowed North Macedonia to edge ahead and close it out.

Greece responded emphatically in the second set. A tightened defence and improved serve reception helped them race to a 25-18 win, levelling the match. The Greeks carried that momentum into the third set, controlling play from the baseline to take it 25-20.

By the fourth set, North Macedonia's resistance had faded. Greece pulled away steadily, sealing the match 25-17 to complete a 3-1 victory.

The opening stages of the second set proved decisive. After dropping the first set 25-23, Greece came out with renewed intensity, cutting their error count sharply and establishing an early lead they never surrendered. Once level at 1-1, North Macedonia never regained the lead in either of the next two sets.

Greece W — Without official individual statistics published by the tournament organisers at the time of writing, Greece's collective response after set one was the story. Their ability to adjust defensively and reduce unforced errors after a shaky opening was the difference.

North Macedonia W — Showed promise in the opening set with aggressive serving that disrupted Greece's rhythm. However, they could not sustain that level across the remaining three sets as errors crept in and Greece's block improved.

This is the first time Greece have dropped a set against North Macedonia in four meetings; every previous encounter ended 3-0. The final three sets — decided by margins of 7, 5 and 8 points — indicate that once Greece found their rhythm, they held a clear quality advantage.

Greece advance to the semi-finals of the Mediterranean Games women's volleyball tournament in Taranto. Their next opponent and match date are to be confirmed based on the outcome of other knockout fixtures. North Macedonia move into the classification round, playing for positions 5th through 8th.

This marks the second consecutive Mediterranean Games where Greece have reached the semi-final stage, following the 2022 edition in Oran.

Greece showed the composure of a side with deeper tournament experience, weathering an early storm before asserting their class across three dominant sets. North Macedonia's first-set performance suggests progress, but the gap in quality — particularly in sustained defensive organisation — remains significant.