Volleyball Continental Leagues 2017 - 2018 Discussion Thread

[VolleyRuller96 264]

MONTPELLIER Volley UC, ACH Volley LJUBLJANA, Ziraat Bankasi ANKARA make big step closer to #CEVCupM 4th Finals. 

 

 

Luxembourg, January 16, 2018. ACH Volley LJUBLJANA and Ziraat Bankasi ANKARA used their home-field advantage to claim wins in straight sets, while MONTPELLIER Volley UC prevailed 3-1 over Shakhtior SOLIGORSK. These three teams are only one point away of booking their tickets to the #CEVCupM 4th Finals.

Here the full results of the #CEVCupM matchups on Tuesday, January 16, 2018:

Shakhtior SOLIGORSK vs MONTPELLIER Volley UC 1-3 (10-25, 16-25, 28-26, 19-25)

MONTPELLIER Volley UC started strong into the game. Due to a powerful serving game and Gustavo Delgado Escribano's eagle eye in offence, the French outclassed the Belarusians 25-10 in the opening set. Shakhtior SOLIGORSK coach Viktar Beksha saw himself forced to make some major adjustments in the own game, but these changes were not crowned with success in the Belarusian offence. As a consequence, MONTPELLIER Volley UC claimed the second set 25-16 to make it 2-0. In the third set, however, Shakhtior SOLIGORSK finally found their rhythm. Opposite Uladzimir Zhyhmont and Andrei Radziuk kept the Belarusian hopes of a home win alive as they led their team to hard-fought 28-26 win in the third set. But MONTPELLIER Volley UC came back stronger after the third set and youngster Jean Patry led the French side to a 25-19 win to claim the game 3-1.

MONTPELLIER Volley UC coach Olivier Lecat was satisfied with the performance of his team. "Our tactical game in the first and second set was really good. In my opinion, it was one of the best matches for our opposite Jean Patry. He is still young and it is his first season at this level. I just think it was not Shakhtior's day."

Shakhtior SOLIGORSK coach Viktar Beksha, on the other hand, could not hide his disappointment. "My guys struggled in reception. On the other hand, our attacking game was not very powerful in the first two sets. That is the main reason why we lost today, but I think we can do better in the return game in France."

ACH Volley LJUBLJANA vs C.S. Arcada GALATI 3-0 (25-19, 27-25, 25-22)

Volleyball fans got their money’s worth in the opening set between ACH Volley LJUBLJANA and C.S. Arcada GALATI as they could enjoy long and hard-fought rallies. The “Orange Dragons” from Ljubljana, however, were able to take advantage of their cold-bloodedness in the attacking game to claim the opening set 25-19.

And hosts ACH Volley LJUBLJANA just kept the rhythm high in the second set. After struggling in the opening rallies, C.S Arcada GALATI finally found their way into their game and shortened the deficit to 20-19. It looked like the momentum had changed. However, due to a strong performance by youngster Petar Đirlić, who scored 14 points in the game, the reigning Slovenian champions were able to edge the Romanians 27-25.

The two teams started strong into the third and decisive set. But it was once again the team from Ljubljana that came out on top to win the set 25-22 and to book a 3-0 win in the first leg game in front of their home crowd.

Despite the crucial win, Zoran Kedačič, coach of ACH Volley LJUBLJANA, was already focusing on the return leg. ''My team fought really hard today. But it is only the first “half” as we have to play again in two weeks. The second game will be decisive.''

Nikolay Jeliazkov, coach of C.S. Arcada GALATI, on the other hand, wants to do better in the return leg. “We did not play well today. Nikola Kovačević’s injury might be one of the reasons why. At the moment, however, we do not know what kind of injury he has got. We will try to do better in our home game.''

 

 

[VolleyRuller96 264]

PAR-KY MENEN get crucial away break in #CEVChallengeCup 8th Finals 

 

 

Luxembourg, January 16, 2018. Julien Winkelmuller led Belgians PAR-KY MENEN to a hard-fought 3-1 win at PÄRNU VK to get opportunity to make the #CEVChallengeCup 4th Finals in front of a home crowd.

Julien Winkelmuller. That is without a doubt the name of the first game of the Leg 1 in the #CEVChallengeCupM 8th Finals. The French outside spiker contributed the impressive amount of 24 points to PAR-KY MENEN's crucial away victory at PÄRNU VK.

And the two teams spoilt the over 820 spectators at the Sports Hall Pärnu with offensive Volleyball at its finest. The two defences were not able to stop the powerful attacks and therefore every second attack resulted in a point. The high pace, however, took its toll. PÄRNU VK committed too many unforced errors. Eventually, the big amount of unforced errors in PÄRNU VK's game (24 errors over the entire match) made the difference. PAR-KY MENEN, on the other hand, were able to reduce the number of unforced errors and to put a lot of pressure on the Estonian offensive game with a strong blocking game in the third and fourth sets. Consequently, the Belgians were able to claim a crucial 3-1 away victory at PÄRNU VK.

PAR-KY MENEN now only need one more point in the return leg game on January 31 to make the #CEVChallengeCupM 4th Finals in front of their home crowd in Menen.

[heywoodu 15,124]

Orion won the first set against Surgut in Siberia 

[VolleyRuller96 264]

 

TODAY'S SCHEDULE
 

 

LEG 3

 

GROUP A

Cucine Lube Civitanova - Fenerbahce Istanbul

 

GROUP B

Halkbank Ankara - Ford Store Levoranta Sastamala

 

GROUP C

Dinamo Moscow - PGE Skra Belchatow

 

GROUP D

Berlin Recycling Volleys - Spacers Toulouse

 

GROUP E

Zaksa Kedzierzyn Kozle - Noliko Masseik

 

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

Vojvodina NS Seme Novi Sad - Assecl Resovia Rzeszow

Posojilnica AICH/DOB - Lindemans Aalst

Dukla Liberec - Calzedonia Verona

Volley Amriswil - GFC Ajaccio VB

 

 

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

 Gasprom-Urga Surgut - Orion Doetinchem

CEZ Karlovarsko - Biogas Nafaels

Olympiacos Piraeus - Lokomotiv Baku

Maliye Pyango SK Ankara - Stroitel Minsk

Montana - Foinikas Syros

Bunge Ravenna - Volejbal Brno

 

 

Watch games at: https://www.laola1.tv/en-int/channel/volleyball

 

 

 

 

 

 

[VolleyRuller96 264]

1 hour ago, heywoodu said:

Orion won the first set against Surgut in Siberia 

But then they lost 1-3

[VolleyRuller96 264]

TODAY'S RESULTS

 

 

LEG 3

 

GROUP A

 Cucine Lube Civitanova 3-1  Fenerbahce Istanbul

 

GROUP B

 Halkbank Ankara 3-0  Ford Store Levoranta Sastamala

 

GROUP C

 Dinamo Moscow 2-3  PGE Skra Belchatow

 

GROUP D

 Berlin Recycling Volleys 3-0  Spacers Toulouse

 

GROUP E

 Zaksa Kedzierzyn Kozle 3-0  Noliko Masseik

 

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

 Vojvodina NS Seme Novi Sad 1-3  Asseco Resovia Rzeszow

 Posojilnica AICH/DOB 1-3 Lindemans Aalst

 Dukla Liberec 1-3  Calzedonia Verona

 Volley Amriswil 0-3  GFC Ajaccio VB

 

 

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

 Gasprom-Urga Surgut 3-1  Orion Doetinchem

 CEZ Karlovarsko 1-3  Biogas Nafaels

 Olympiacos Piraeus 3-0  Lokomotiv Baku

 Maliye Pyango SK Ankara 3-0  Stroitel Minsk

 Montana 3-1  Foinikas Syros

 Bunge Ravenna 3-0  Volejbal Brno

[VolleyRuller96 264]

Skra win ‘Clash of the Titans’ with Dinamo MOSCOW

 

Luxembourg, January 17, 2018. An exciting night filled with classy actions in the pool stage of the 2018 CEV Volleyball Champions League – Men started with Halkbank ANKARA storming to a rather comfortable 3-0 victory over Finland’s rookies Ford Store Levoranta SASTAMALA to improve their win-loss record in Pool B to 2-1. The eagerly anticipated matchup featuring the still winless Dinamo MOSCOW and PGE Skra BELCHATOW ended in a 3-2 victory for the visitors from Poland – who could finally celebrate their first hurrah in the tournament but still have much ground to make up for after losing their previous matches to CHAUMONT VB 52 Haute Marne and Lokomotiv NOVOSIBIRSK in Pool C. Zaksa KEDZIERZYN-KOZLE extended their winning streak to three matches in a row in Pool E while Germany’s BERLIN Recycling Volleys pulled out a 3-0 home victory over Spacer’s TOULOUSE VB to stay in contention for a spot in the Playoffs 12. Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA dropped one set in their matchup with Fenerbahce but the Italians could nevertheless easily make it two wins out of three matches they have contested this far in Pool A.  

Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA (ITA) vs. Fenerbahce SK ISTANBUL (TUR) 3-1 (25-22, 25-11, 21-25, 25-12) 

•    The visitors started the opening set by leading 15-12 but Lube (with Osmany Juantorena sitting on the bench), came back strong with a great performance of Tsvetan Sokolov (18-18), before taking the lead with a winning block of Dragan Stankovic (21-18). The Bulgarian star Sokolov, who scored six points with 71% of efficiency in attack, sealed the final 25-22 win for the Italian team.
•    In the second set, CIVITANOVA had an extraordinary scoring streak thanks to the great serves of Micah Christenson (8-1), then controlled the situation until the end (14-5, 19-8 and 25-11) with the help of their middle blocker Enrico Cester, who finished this section of the game with five points and 100% success rate in attack. 
•    Fenerbahce ISTANBUL re-opened the match by winning the third set with a good performance at blocking (two stuffs for Resul Tekeli), but CIVITANOVA ended the game 3-1 as they comfortably set the pace from start to end of the fourth set. 
•    The silver medallists from the 2017 FIVB Club World Championship, Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA scored their second win in the 2018 edition of the Champions League, confirming their second place in the current standing of Pool A with two wins and seven points. Italy’s Sir Colussi Sicoma PERUGIA are leading the way in the pool with three victories and seven points, while Belgium’s Knack ROESELARE follow in third with one win and two losses. Fenerbahce SK ISTANBUL have not scored any victories until now, and are almost out of the race for qualification to the Playoff round.
•    Home outside hitter Taylor Sander top scored in the match with 19 points, while Guillaume Quesque was the top scorer for Fenerbahce with 10. 

 

 

Giampaolo Medei, head coach of Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA: “My players were good at finding the mental strength which was required to start this match, especially knowing that we were ‘obliged’ to score a victory to remain as close as possible to first place in the standings, even more after the result of yesterday’s game between PERUGIA and ROESELARE. We are obviously very happy with the final result, but we must learn from the loss of third set that in the next match in Istanbul we need to be well focused from start to end in order to claim another victory.” 

“It has been a very hard match,” said Fenerbahce coach Veljko Basic, “but this is normal as we faced one of the best teams in the world. We won one set, but we had many problems in reception and also with our offensive game, so I think it was impossible to do and achieve more than we did.” 

Halkbank ANKARA (TUR) vs. Ford Store Levoranta SASTAMALA (FIN) 3-0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-16) 

•    Halkbank recorded their second victory in three matches they have contested in Pool B this far – thus taking their actual tally to six points. 
•    The hosts from Turkey had to fight for the first couple of sets but were clearly dominant in the third set. 
•    Finland’s Ambassador to Turkey, Mrs Päivi Kairamo, attended the match at Baskent Volleyball Hall to support SASTAMALA. Their setter Mikko Esko put on a show to keep the score close for most of the first and second sets. 
•    The Finns lost concentration in the third set – and Halkbank comfortably sealed a 3-0 victory. 
•    At the end of the game, Halkbank players shared their happiness with many young Volleyball fans that had come together to support them.

 

 

 

Slobodan Kovac, head coach of Halkbank: “I am satisfied because we won a Champions League game in three sets even with some players struggling with problems, like Burutay Subasi, but I think Nemanja Petric did a very good job. This is an extremely important victory and a good step forward. I still think we have the skills to play much better, especially for the first couple of sets, where the Finns could achieve something more but after that our quality, especially at serving and blocking, made the difference. This 3-0 victory is a good result for us.” 

Dinamo MOSCOW (RUS) vs. PGE Skra BELCHATOW (POL) 2-3 (15-25, 25-23, 20-25, 25-23, 12-15) 

•    Mariusz Wlazly scored three points in a row from the service line for Skra to move the score to 13-8 for the visitors; a mistake in attack by Pavel Kruglov finished the opening set at 25-15 for Skra. 
•    The respective setters took centre stage in the second set, providing their hitters with many opportunities to score – and this is what Kruglov and Milad Ebadipour Ghara did for Dinamo and Skra, respectively. 
•    Despite suffering a small injury at the beginning of the fourth set, Wlazly continued to perform at the highest level. 
•    One of the most spectacular rallies came by the score of 6-6 in the fourth set, with Ebadipour’s save before Denis Kalinin cashed that point for Dinamo. 
•    The hosts made too many mistakes in the fifth set, especially at serving, and Skra ended up celebrating a 3-2 victory. 

 

Roberto Piazza, head coach of PGE Skra BELCHATOW: “I cannot say that I expected such a result, absolutely not. I knew it would be a tough game also because of its importance for the standing in our pool. Our group is amazing, maybe the strongest pool this season in the Champions League. We are happy because we won this game in Moscow but we are angry that we lost one point and travel home with two only. However, the most important thing is that we won the game against Dinamo.”   

Boris Kolchin, head coach of Dinamo MOSCOW: “Skra won because they did better in serve and reception. We could not play with our middle blockers. We won two sets, but in the fifth set we made many mistakes and eventually lost the game. Pavel Kruglov was amazing as always today. Dick Kooy played a nice game but we were missing Yury Berezhko very much. I hope he will be with us in Poland. For the moment, we do not have a leader in the team. Who knows if we will go to the Playoffs or not, but we will anyway do our best.” 

BERLIN Recycling Volleys (GER) vs. Spacer’s TOULOUSE VB (FRA) 3-0 (25-15, 28-26, 25-16) 

•    As many as 4,100 fans attended the first home match of the BR Volleys in Pool D. 
•    After a close start to the game, BERLIN imposed their quality in reception and attack to cruise to a landslide 25-15 win in the opening set. 
•    The BR Volleys suffered a drop of concentration in the second set with TOULOUSE rising to the occasion and the two teams delivering many long, exciting rallies until the hosts eventually came out on top at 28-26: 

 

 

•    The BR Volleys routinely controlled the third set from start to end, thus pulling out a 3-0 victory. 
•    Lukas Basic top scored in the match with 16 points for TOULOUSE as Paul Carroll piled up 13 for the hosts. 

Kaweh Niroomand, President of BERLIN Recycling Volleys: “We were all confident with that match. Compared to our match against SWD powervolleys DÜREN in the Bundesliga on Sunday, we even did better. However, we will have to win in Toulouse to keep the race for the Playoffs 12 open. But playing in Toulouse will demand even more of us.” 

Luke Reynolds, coach of BERLIN Recycling Volleys: “We have made a good step forward from our Sunday match against DÜREN. We executed our block-defence much better and that was the key: we served a lot better than on Sunday, which gave us much more opportunities for our play. However, we still have to keep on getting better in every aspect of our play, but I hope the upcoming matches will help us. The last two matches raised our self-confidence and although we have many games to play within the upcoming days I hope the number of matches will help us as we gain rhythm and can gather the momentum for the challenges ahead.” 

Stéphane Sapinart, coach of Spacer’s TOULOUSE VB: “It has been a good atmosphere to play in. Of course, I am not happy to lose 0-3, but considering our situation with two injured players I could not make substitutions as I wanted to, so I think we gave off what we could. I thought we might be able to take the second set, but maybe the experience made the difference for BERLIN.”

Zaksa KEDZIERZYN-KOZLE (POL) vs. Noliko MAASEIK (BEL) 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-18) 

•    Zaksa comfortably claimed their third straight victory in Pool E before almost 1,500 home fans. 
•    The hosts stormed to an early 6-1 lead in the first set before Noliko closed in at 10-8 and eventually drew level at 13-all. Zaksa found back their rhythm and a terrific spike by Sam Deroo restored a Polish three-point lead (18-15), which they were able to hold on to until the end of the set (25-22). 

 

 

•    Noliko claimed a 3-1 advantage in the early stages of the second set but Zaksa responded swiftly with Deroo leading the way (8-5, 10-7). The hosts scored four straight points to make it 17-11 in their favour before Jolan Cox responded for Noliko with some ‘atomic’ serves (17-15). Zaksa, however, controlled the final stages of the second set to double their lead in the match (25-20). 
•    Noliko coach Joel Banks stopped the game at 4-1 for Zaksa in the third set and his players responded well by closing in at 5-4; Zaksa were nevertheless 8-5 up again at the first technical break and the Poles widened their lead to 12-8 after Maurice Torres blocked Kamil Rychlicki. Zaksa controlled the rest of the match with ease and a service error by MAASEIK sealed their rather quick and convincing 3-0 victory (25-18). 

[VolleyRuller96 264]

Great evening for away teams in #CEVCupM 8th Finals 

 

 

Luxembourg, January 17, 2018. GFC AJACCIO VB, Asseco Resovia RZESZOW, and Calzedonia VERONA get the away break to get the opportunity to book their tickets to the #CEVCupM quarterfinals in front of their home crowds.

Here the full results and the match reports:

Vojvodina NS Seme NOVI SAD (SRB) vs Asseco Resovia RZESZOW (POL) 1-3 (21-25, 22-25, 25-21, 20-25) 

As many as 3,000 fans attended this fixture with the visitors eventually claiming a 3-1 victory powered by Jakub Jarosz, who top scored with 23 points. The audience included many children and young Volleyball players, who had come to witness a truly high-level game. Vojvodina took to the court with a foreign player for the first time in many years – this being Ukraine’s Vitaliy Sukhinin. The leader of Asseco, Jochen Schöps, returned to Novi Sad after playing a Champions League game in the Serbian city almost ten years ago. 

Nedzad Osmankac, head coach of Vojvodina NS Seme NOVI SAD: “I would like to thank the fans for their support tonight. I think this was a great Volleyball show. It was obvious that Asseco Resovia had to play their best in order to beat us. They could not relax at any time, as we were able to keep the score close throughout the whole match, except for the fourth set. I am happy because we fought equally, and many players had a chance to perform. We just have to keep going and try even harder next time.”

Jochen Schöps, player of Asseco Resovia: “Vojvodina has a young but physically strong and ambitious team. They played very well and therefore I am especially happy with this victory. Overall, we were better, but the match was a difficult one. This is just the first step and we have to play well in the second match too. I played a Champions League match in Novi Sad a long time ago, and it was nice to return to this city.” 

Dukla LIBEREC (CZE) vs Calzedonia VERONA (ITA) 1-3 (25-23, 21-25, 12-25, 19-25)

In the opening set, the two teams fought at eye-level. None of the teams were able to break away in the crunch time of the set, however, hosts Dukla LIBEREC – inspired by their fans – were able to make the difference. And it was Jakub Vesely to send the crowd into hysterics as he ended the first set 25-23 with a tremendous spike.

Dukla LIBEREC tasted blood now and started with a strong performance into the second set too. Calzedonia VERONA coach Nikola Grbic saw himself forced to make some adjustments in the own game – and these changes were crowned with success. The Italian offence started to dominate the game as the hosts were not able to stop the Italian attacking game anymore. As a consequence, the Italians claimed the second set 25-21 to tie the game. 

Nikola Grbic’s side were on a roll now. Hosts Dukla LIBEREC tried everything to find back into the rhythm of the opening, but the Czechs were already trailing by seven points at the second technical timeout. The overwhelming power of the Italian side resulted in a devastating 25-12 win in the second set and their first lead of the game. 

The Italians did not want to let LIBEREC take them the bread out of their mouths. And Thomas Jaeschke‘s bone-breaking serves led the Italians to a comfortable lead at 14-10. The Czechs were able to keep their hopes of a tiebreak alive as they shortened their deficit, but once again it was Jaeschke to spell the doom for the hosts as he ended the game with another ace serve.

Posojilnica AICH/DOB (AUT) vs Lindemans AALST (BEL) 1-3 (22-25, 14-25, 29-27, 20-25)

The two sides spoiled the 618 spectators in attendance at the Jufa Arena in Bleiburg with Volleyball at its finest in the beginning of the first set. The result of this intense battle was a neck-to-neck race with delightful rallies; however, much to the disappointment of the local fans, the Belgians were eventually able to wrap it up at 25-22. The momentum was on Lindemans AALST side from now on. The Belgians got an early 8-4 lead and successfully prevented a comeback by the local underdogs to clinch the second set 25-14. It looked like a perfect sweep for the team from Aalst. However, both teams came out strong in the third set and it was the local heroes to turn tables. The Belgians were able to level the game at 18-18 again, but eventually, the Austrians were rewarded for their effort with a hard-fought 29-27 win in the third set. Lindemans AALST were forced to find an answer - and the Belgians did. Johan Devoghel's squad simply overpowered the Austrians. Posojilnica AICH/DOB found back their rhythm, but the deficit was simply too big. Consequently, Lindemans AALST were able to close the game with 25-20 in the fourth set.

Lindemans AALST coach Johan Devoghel lauded Posojilnica's effort. "AICH/DOB were able to keep the score tight at times and even managed to win one set, but we were able to control most of the game and won all the key points."

AICH/DOB manager Martin Micheu could not hide his disappointment. "We expected this kind of pressure from our opponent, but as we struggled in our reception and block, the Belgians could not be defeated today."

Volley AMRISWIL (SUI) vs. GFC AJACCIO VB (FRA) 0-3 (14-25, 16-25, 19-25) 

The reigning Swiss national champions, without the injured Sébastien Steigmeier, did not stand a chance in their first matchup with France’s 2017 national cup winners AJACCIO. The hosts managed to improve their performance as the game progressed but they never really put a threat to the opposition. 

AMRISWIL coach Ratko Pavlicevic had many problems to cope with – with Steigmeier injured, his substitute Roman Brühwiler suffered an injury as well in the last round of the Swiss national league with Volley SCHÖNENWERD. His second option, Nehemiah Mote, was slightly injured too – therefore outside hitter Jovan Djokic had to play as opposite. Djokic did perform well as he ended up scoring as many as 14 points for the home side. 

After a close start (4-4), the visitors broke away (7-4, 11-5, 16-7) and never looked back (25-14) as the Swiss did not stand a chance, committing as many as five service mistakes in the opening set. AMRISWIL claimed an early 5-4 lead in the second set but AJACCIO responded swiftly, especially with their Argentinean opposite hitter, Jose Luis Gonzalez, who repeatedly ‘bombarded’ the Swiss defence. He left no chance to the hosts and AJACCIO comfortably won the second set as well (25-16). Mote replaced Marko Kesten in the third set and with the help of Hugo Hamacher Silva, AMRISWIL kept the score tight up to 16-all. The local fans were hoping for a comeback but Gonzalez shattered their dreams with a terrific series from the service line to close the match in three sets (25-19). AJACCIO made the difference at blocking (they scored nine vs. one for the Swiss side) and the many mistakes made by AMRISWIL paved the way with gold to the French side, even though the hosts were better (49% vs 45%) than the opposition in terms of positive reception. 

[VolleyRuller96 264]

Home teams dominating in Leg 1 of the #CEVChallengeCupM 8th Finals 

 

 

Luxembourg, January 18, 2018. Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT, Olympiacos PIRAEUS, Maliye Piyango SK ANKARA, MONTANA Volley, and Bunge RAVENNA seized their home-court advantage to start with a victory into #CEVChallengeCupM, while Biogas Volley NÄFELS were the only team to claim an away break.

Here all the results and match reports from Leg 1 in the #CEVChallengeCupM 8th Finals:

Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT (RUS) vs Orion DOETINCHEM (NED) 3-1 (21-25, 25-21, 26-24, 25-13)

The guests from the Netherlands were able to shock the Russian side in the opening set. Seain Cook overpowered SURGUT with his bone-breaking serves. This serving spree resulted in a 6-1 lead for the team from DOETINCHEM. Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT had to fight hard, but eventually found into their game. But the deficit was too big and so the Dutch booked the set with 25-21. The game completely changed in the second set. The Russians got better off the starting blocks and took the lead. The Dutch were able to level the game at 19-19, but the hosts proved a longer wind to claim the second set 25-21 and to level the game. 
The third set, on the other hand, was on the razor's edge. The high pace resulted in many unforced errors on both sides. But Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT were able to overcome the Dutch side in extremis with 26-24 to clinch the third set. The momentum was now on the Russian side. Top spiker Kirill Ursov and outside hitter Vladimir Ivanov eventually led Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT to a devastating 25-13 win to claim the three points at stake.

Redbad Strikwerda, coach of Orion DOETINCHEM: “Congratulations to SURGUT on the victory, we will be ready to continue the fight in a week. It was a surprise for us to spot a new setter in the opponent’s team since we had not seen him before. With his help, SURGUT managed to impose their game and won.” 

Ruslan Zhbankov, coach of Gazprom-Ugra SURGUT: “The team still feels the psychological burden associated with the latest defeat in the Russian championship. It was unusual to play against the Dutch club. We had a very bad discipline in the first set, but by the end of the game, we found some weak points in the opponent’s game and managed to use them to our benefit. Despite the victory, it still will be a challenge to play the second leg in the Netherlands.”

Olympiacos PIRAEUS (GRE) vs Lokomotiv BAKU (AZE) 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-8)

Olympiacos PIRAEUS (GRE) vs. Lokomotiv BAKU (AZE) 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-8) 

Olympiacos are only two sets away from progressing to the quarterfinals after their easy 3-0 home victory over Lokomotiv BAKU at Melina Merkouri sports hall in Rentis. The “Reds” appeared in very good shape, especially in the second set, which they claimed by a landslide 25-15. The re-match will take place in Baku on February 1 and Olympiacos will be trying to progress to the next round after previously edging Inegöl Belediye BURSA and TOURS VB in the early stages of the competition. 

The match lasted 68 minutes only and Olympiacos out-blocked Lokomotiv eight to two. Jeroen Rauwerdink was the best receiver of the game (75% positive, 50% perfect reception) as four Olympiacos players attacked with a success rate above 50% - Rauwerdink (53%, 9/17), Mikko Oivanen (56%, 9/16), Todor Aleksiev (67%, 10/15) and Marcus Böhme (86%, 6/7). Lokomotiv could score only eight points in the third set – and this represents an all-time record win for Olympiacos in the European Cups, their previous best mark being a 25-12 set win on February 3, 2000 against Finland’s Keski-Savon Pateri VARKAUS. 

Farid Jalalov, head coach of Lokomotiv BAKU: “I already knew pretty much about Olympiacos, since some years ago I played against the Greek team while wearing the shirt of VfB FRIEDRICHSHAFEN. At that time already, Olympiacos was a good team too. I think Olympiacos now is very strong and I strongly believe that they are the main favourites to win the Challenge Cup this year.”

Dmitriy Obodnikov, player of Lokomotiv: “Before the start of the game we believed that we could deliver a better performance. However, we did not play very well and made too many mistakes. Olympiacos is too strong and I think they will be one of the two eventual challengers for the title in this competition.” 

Fernando Munoz Benitez, head coach of Olympiacos: “I think it was a good game for us, with a good performance in general, especially since we controlled the game almost from start to end. Only in the first set, Lokomotiv was truly competitive and the score remained close, but we dominated the two remaining sets. I am satisfied, I am happy, and I want to congratulate my players because they focussed very well on tonight’s game.”  

Marcus Böhme, player of Olympiacos: “Well, 3-0 is a clear result. We had some problems in our game in the first set but this is not new for us. We are working on this. When we focussed 100% on the game, we showed our true potential and won the other two sets easily.”

ČEZ KARLOVARSKO (CZE) vs Biogas Volley NÄFELS (SUI) 1-3 (24-26, 25-19, 23-25, 22-25)

The Czechs and the Swiss fought a hard-fought battle in the opening set. None of the teams were able to break away as the sideouts of both squads were just too strong. Therefore, the defence had to make the difference in the crunch time of the first set - and it did. NÄFELS were able to stop KARLOVARSKO's offensive rhythm and eventually prevailed 26-24. And the over 750 spectators at the Sport Hall for Indoor Games in Karlovy Vary could sit back and enjoy more offensive Volleyball at its finest in the second set. This time, however, the hosts proved a longer wind - and thanks to less unforced errors in the own game, ČEZ KARLOVARSKO delighted their home crowd with a 25-19 win in the second set. The game was all tied again, but José Fabian Martinez Roa led NÄFELS' offence with powerful pipes to edge the Czechs 25-23 and to take the lead back. The home fans did their best to push their local heroes in the fourth set, but ČEZ KARLOVARSKO started to struggle under the pressure and once again committed too many unforced errors, even after Filip Rejlek replaced starting opposite Michal Krisko. And it was NÄFELS' Martinez Roa to clinch the victory with a powerful serve (25-19).

ČEZ KARLOVARSKO coach Jiří Novák saw the own offence as the main reason for the defeat. “We did not play well in attack today. We wasted a lot of power and energy in the first set. We were ahead by four points towards the end of the first set, but still lost. The second set was better, but we committed too many mistakes in the crucial moments of the match.”

Biogas Volley NÄFELS coach Dalibor Polák was proud of his team. “It was a typical European Cup match. We had more luck in the end. KARLOVARSKO might have underestimated us. It was a little bit of a nervous game from both sides. But José Fabian Martinez Roa was really good today.” 

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TODAY'S SCHEDULE

 

LEG 3

 

 

GROUP B

PAOK Thesalloniki - VFB Friedrichshafen

 

GROUP E

 Trentino Diatec - Arkas Izmir

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

Hapoel Mate-Asher Akko - Belogorie Belgorod

 

ROUND 1/8, 1st Leg

CSU Steaua Bucarest - Benfica Lisboa

 

Watch games at: https://www.laola1.tv/en-int/channel/volleyball