Players of both sides compete during the quarterfinal match between China and the United States at the Women's Water Polo World Cup 2026 - Final in Sydney, Australia, July 22, 2026. (Photo: Xinhua/Gong Bing)

SYDNEY, July 22 (Xinhua) -- China lost to the United States in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Women's Water Polo World Cup at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Center on Wednesday.

China leveled the score at 4-4 late in the opening quarter before the United States scored eight unanswered goals, holding China scoreless in the second and third periods en route to a 14-8 victory.

Finishing proved to be the difference between the two teams, with the United States converting 14 of its 27 shots compared with China's eight from 23.

The result means China, which qualified for the quarterfinals in Sydney by finishing second in the Division 2 preliminary tournament held in Malta in April, is out of medal contention and will enter the fifth-place bracket beginning on Friday.

Speaking after the match, China coach Miguel Oca said the World Cup was a learning experience for the team.

"The purpose is to grow game after game and experience this kind of game with the big teams," he said.

China captain Shen Yineng said the team was still somewhat nervous, largely because of its youthful lineup.

"We knew the United States was a very strong team, so our approach was to go out there and fight hard. But our younger players are still short on experience," she said. "There were quite a few chances that we would normally put away, but today we were a bit tense when taking our shots and that resulted in more errors than usual."

"I honestly think we could have played much better, but we just didn't perform the way we wanted to today," Shen added.

The United States advanced to the semifinals, where it will face Australia, which beat Italy 15-14 on Wednesday night.

In the other quarterfinals, Russia beat the Netherlands 11-6, while Spain edged Hungary 8-7 in a clash between the world's top two teams.