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A Purdue Fort Wayne setter will have an opportunity to represent Portugal in the most prestigious international tournament.
Frederico Santos was named to the Portuguese Men’s National Team preliminary roster for the FIVB Volleyball Nations League that will take place this summer.
Portugal, which is making its Volleyball Nations League debut, had its 23-player roster unveiled Tuesday on the tournament’s website. In addition, Santos is one of the seven players on the roster who are 22 years old or younger.
Santos appeared in 22 matches as the back-up setter for Purdue Fort Wayne last season. The setter coming off the bench led Purdue Fort Wayne to a near regular season upset of the eventual MIVA champions Lewis and helped the Mastodons reach the MIVA Tournament semifinals.
The Volleyball Nations League begins May 31 and features the top 16 countries in the world. The top-five teams after a five-week preliminary round and the host-nation United States will advance to the Volleyball Nations League Finals in July in Chicago.
Portugal did not qualify for the Volleyball Nations League last year.
However, it won the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Challenger Cup to earn a Volleyball Nations League berth and replace South Korea in the 16-team field. South Korea was relegated because of its last-place finish in the Volleyball Nations League.
Santos was not on the Portuguese roster when it won the Challenger Cup.