Japan suffered a crushing quarterfinal loss to Brazil at the women's volleyball world championship Tuesday after racing to a two-set lead.
Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Brazil won 18-25, 18-25, 25-22, 27-25, 15-13 on the back of a match-high 25 points by Gabi in a 2-hour, 18-minute contest played in Apeldoorn, Netherlands.
Kotona Hayashi had a team-high 21 points for Japan, followed by 19 from Nichika Yamada and 18 from Mayu Ishikawa, whose attack met the net at Brazil's match point.
"I failed in my spike attempt in that situation," the 22-year-old Ishikawa said. "It's frustrating that we came close but let a big win slip away."
Brazil set up a semifinal matchup against Italy. The United States and Serbia will meet in the other semifinal.
"In the end, we were unable to overcome Brazil's toughness," Japan coach Masayoshi Manabe said. "This is a good lesson, however. Our players worked really hard. We want to make this bitter feeling a stepping stone for next year."