VolleyRuller96

PARTICIPATING TEAMS: CORE (Can Not Be Relegated) Brazil China Germany Italy Japan Netherlands Russia Serbia South Korea Thailand Turkey United States CHALLENGER (Can Be Relegated) Argentina Belgium Dominican Republic Poland

Women's Volleyball FIVB Nations League 2018 Various Cities - 15 May 2018 - 1 July 2018 Totallympics Results Thread

Legia Warszawa won Polish Cup, defeating Arka Gdynia 2-1. This apparently caused big joy in Luxembourg, as one of their NT players appeared in the game playing for Legia, therefore achieving the biggest success in football for their country since over 25 years

Good luck all neighbors

NATIONS QUALIFIED TO CEV u20 VOLLEYBALL MEN'S EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP / 2019 BELGIUM (Hosts) NETHERLANDS (Hosts) BELARUS FINLAND FRANCE GERMANY ITALY PORTUGAL RUSSIA TURKEY NATIONS QUALIFIED TO QUALIFICATION ROUND 3 CZECH REPUBLIC GREECE ISRAEL LATVIA POLAND ROMANIA SERBIA SPAIN

NATIONS QUALIFIED TO CEV u19 VOLLEYBALL WOMEN'S EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2019 ALBANIA ( Hosts) BULGARIA FRANCE ITALY POLAND RUSSIA SERBIA TURKEY NATIONS QUALIFIED TO QUALIFICATION ROUND 3 BELARUS GERMANY GREECE NETHERLANDS NORWAY ROMANIA SLOVAKIA SLOVENIA

QUALIFICATION ROUND, DAY IV RESULTS POOL A Spain 3-2 Bulgaria Switzerland 0-3 Italy POOL B Hungary 0-3 Israel Russia 3-1 Estonia POOL C Czech Republic 3-1 Finland POOL D Slovenia 1-3 Latvia France 3-0 Montenegro POOL E Germany 3-0 Romania POOL G Turkey 3-2 Slovakia POOL H Ukraine 0-3 Belarus Croatia 0-3 Poland

QUALIFICATION ROUND II DAY IV RESULTS POOL C Norway 3-0 Austria Italy 3-1 Czech Republic POOL E Spain 1-3 Turkey Croatia 0-3 Slovakia POOL F Belgium 0-3 Belarus Romania 3-2 France

QUALIFICATION ROUND, DAY IV POOL A Spain - Bulgaria Switzerland - Italy POOL B Hungary - Israel Russia - Estonia POOL C Czech Republic - Finland POOL D Slovenia - Latvia France - Montenegro POOL E Germany - Romania POOL G Turkey - Slovakia POOL H Ukraine - Belarus Croatia - Poland

QUALIFICATION ROUND II DAY IV POOL C Norway - Austria Italy - Czech Republic POOL E Spain - Turkey Croatia - Slovakia POOL F Belgium - Belarus Romania - France WATCH THE GAMES AT https://www.laola1.tv/en-at/channel/volleyball

Portugal shock Serbia to join Russia, France into U20 finals Luxembourg, April 28, 2018. Russia became the first team to secure a spot at the finals of the 2018 CEV U20 Volleyball European Championship - Men by winning their qualification pool. Later on Saturday France followed suit before Portugal delivered a shocking upset of Serbia in Zrenjanin to claim their ticket to #EuroVolleyU20M in the Netherlands and Belgium. Five more finalists are to become known on Sunday. Denmark were the source of the other major surprise on Saturday as they hammered out a four-set win against the 2017 U19 European champions of the Czech Republic to stay in contention for one of the eight spots in the third qualification round reserved for the second-placed teams in the pools. Pool A in Corigliano Calabro (ITA) Italy shut out the other unbeaten team in Pool A, Bulgaria, and set themselves within comfortable reach of the finals. With Spain beating Switzerland on Saturday, their survival game with Bulgaria on Sunday is likely to decide the important second place in the final standings. Switzerland vs. Spain 0-3 (16-25, 22-25, 23-25) Spain beat Switzerland at the end of a spectacular and enjoyable match that lasted one hour and 19 minutes. Always behind the Iberian team, the boys of coach Marco Foelmli managed at times to put their Spanish peers in difficulty. Spain’s Jordi Ramon Ferragut was the top scorer of the match with 23 points. The first set was quite one-sided, with the Spaniards much better and well in control of the scoreboard. The second and the third sets were more balanced and the winning margins at the end were quite narrow. Bulgaria vs. Italy 0-3 (23-25, 16-25, 17-25)Bulgaria started very strong and led the way for the most part of the first set. However, in the money time, the home team showed great determination for an exalting comeback with Diego Cantagalli contributing as many as 10 points. In the second and the third sets, Italy took command after competitive first halves breaking away to close them by wide margins. Cantagalli was the most prolific player with 19 points scored.Pool B in Anapa (RUS) Only one match in this pool was played on Saturday. With the Russians stamping their second straight-set victory, none of the other teams have a shot at catching up. On Sunday, the second place will be at stake in the match between Hungary and Israel. Russia vs. Israel 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-21) Russia took an early 5-0 lead to prompt a time-out for Israel. The Israeli narrowed the gap down to 5-8 with spikes by Ido David, but Russia had good all-around game and prevented Israel to get any closer. Despite Israel’s self-sacrificing game in defence, Anatoliy Volodin’s booming spikes finished the set off at 25-17. The two teams started trading points in the second set, but Russia overcome a slow start and jumped ahead to a 10-5 lead. Egor Sidenko started serving and after several aces improved the score to 16-6. Coach Andrey Nozdrin opted to use some reserves and set rolled on to a speedy 25-14 close. Russia continued to dominate on the court in the third set for a 8-5 lead. Coach Yossef Geva used a time-out and Israel levelled the score at 13-13 with spikes by Enosh Shtift. Andrey Nozdrin used his time-out to instruct the Russian players whose mistakes in defence allowed Israel to go 16-14 ahead. Russia levelled at 18-18 and went on to a 25-21 ending. Egor Sidenko was the best scorer of the match with 13 points. Andrey Nozdrin, coach of Russia: “The team of Israel is very organised and play well in defence. We had to fight for every point.”Konstantin Abaev, captain of Russia: “We were not confident today. We have many young players who are not very experienced.”Yossef Geva, coach of Israel: “We tried to do our best, but we play against a very strong team.”Pool C in Zdar nad Sazavou (CZE) After losing to Finland on Friday, Denmark rebounded with a surprising win against hosts Czech Republic on Saturday, saving their chances for the second place in the final standings. The first will be contested between the Finns and the Czechs on Sunday, with the northern European side needing to win one set to qualify for the finals. Denmark vs. Czech Republic 3-1 (20-25, 25-21, 25-17, 25-19) After losing the first set, Denmark came back stronger than ever. Their service was excellent. They had good reception and their setter Mads Jensen managed to do everything he wanted to. Denmark played their best game. In the fourth set the score was tied at 15-15, but the Danes broke away with a 21-15 lead and never looked back, showing that they were the better side in this match and delivering a major upset of the 2017 U19 European champs. Marek Sotola was the best scorer of the game with 22 points for the Czech Republic. Tobias Hougs Kjaer, captain of Denmark: “This is incredible! I can’t believe we just beat the European champions. It is not every day you can play against European champions and today we won! I am really happy. We tried to outplay them throughout the game, we were aggressive and we did it!”Jan Svoboda, coach of the Czech Republic: “I think that the first home match was very nervous for us. We won the first set, but after that Denmark showed their best game. They deservedly won today.” Pool D in Herceg Novi (MNE) At the end of Saturday’s competition day, France saw themselves untouchable on top of the standings with a ticket to the finals in the Netherlands and Belgium in their hands. With two straight-set wins on their record, they left the rest in the pool to fight for the second place. France vs. Slovenia 3-0 (25-12, 25-10, 25-15) In the first set, the pre-favourites of this tournament, France, were better than Slovenia, especially in serving, and won by a wide margin, taking advantage of the many mistakes on the Slovenian side of the net. The second set started with more errors by the Slovenian team. The French imposed their tempo and continued to dominate with great serves. The Slovenian coach tried to change the course of the match through time-outs and substitutions, but nothing seemed to work. Two more landslide set scores shaped up the final result in this one-sided straight-setter. Latvia vs. Montenegro 3-1 (30-28, 22-25, 25-21, 26-24) Match report expected... Pool E in Ploiesti (ROU) With two wins and six points each, Germany and hosts Romania are now set to lock horns with each other on Sunday in the final battle for the first place in Pool E and a fast track pass to #EuroVolleyU20M. Germany vs. Sweden 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-12) Germany claimed their second victory in Ploiesti by pulling out a straight-set win over Sweden. The match with Sweden was fully under their control from start to finish, mostly thanks to their smashing spikes and blocking performance. The best scorer of the match was Germany’s Linus Weber with 15 points. Romania vs. Austria 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-15) The home guys of Romania delivered a superb performance to claim their second victory on home soil. It was an easy win for Romania in Ploiesti. The fearless Austrian team put up a real fight only in the second set, but they couldn’t have the upper hand in the end. The Romanian team made the best use of their time-outs to eventually seal a straight-set win. Nicolas Valentin Grigorie was the biggest point contributor, scoring 13 times for the winning side. Pool F in Zrenjanin (SRB) Portugal shocked the hosts of Pool F with a stunning four-set victory over Serbia in the deciding match in Zrenjanin. The squad from southwestern Europe secured their spot in the finals of the European Champinship, leaving the Balkan team with a consolation ticket to the next qualification round. Portugal vs. Serbia 3-1 (25-22, 25-12, 13-25, 31-29) Serbia started well and led by couple of points in the early stages of the first set, but the Portuguese guys slowly narrowed the gap and turned the score in their favour by the midsection of the set. Portugal kept their composure in the end and went on to win this part of the match. The second set was disastrous for Serbia, but the home team stroke back in the third. In the fourth set, Portugal were always in front by a couple of points, but Serbia managed to equalise at 21-21. At this stage, the fans in Zrenjanin saw a real thriller as both teams gave everything they had in the decisive moments. In the end, Portugal were slightly more focused and wrapped it all up at 31-29. Andre Marques was the top scorer of the game with 14 points for Portugal.Nuno Miguel dos Santos Pereira, coach of Portugal: “I think we deserved this victory. I have a fantastic group of players. They prepared well and I want to congratulate them for this fantastic achievement.”Vladimir Vasovic, coach of Serbia: “Clear victory for Portugal, no doubt! They played their game, with fast attacks and quick distribution to the ends, and we couldn’t respond. I think that we gave our maximum today, and we have to wait and see what happens next.”Pool G in Humenne (SVK) Greece achieved their first victory in Humenne. However, by winning one set against them, hosts Slovakia stayed in contention for one of the top two places in the final standings. Everything will be decided on Sunday in the last match between Turkey and Slovakia, where the home team need to win in less than five sets to let the set ratios play their magic.Slovakia vs. Greece 1-3 (25-22, 21-25, 22-25, 19-25)Slovakia started slowly, but finally won the opening set. Greece improved their level in the next part of the game. They served very well and their opposite was almost unstoppable. Alexandros Raptis collected 26 points and was the key player for Greece.Peter Kalny, coach of Slovakia: "Serving was our biggest problem. We made a lot of mistakes in float service and this is unacceptable. Greece did not play through the middle, but we were not successful in defence. Their opposite Alexandros Raptis made the difference."Panagiotis Lakasas, coach of Greece: "This game was our target, we wanted to win this. We played very focused, especially in tactical service. We didn’t risk it and achieved success. We also played better in reception than we did yesterday, but of course the opponent was different. We are happy with the win and the three points and with this result we took an advantage in the race for the second place in the pool."Pool H in Cherkasy (UKR) Neighbouring Belarus and Ukraine will meet face to face in Cherkasy on Sunday to determine the winner of Pool H, who will travel to the finals in the Netherlands and Belgium. After the second competition day in Ukraine, both Poland and Croatia are still in contention for the second place in the final standings. Ukraine vs. Poland 1-3 (25-22, 17-25, 23-25, 23-25) In the starting set the Polish players ran off with a three-point lead on several occasions, but the Ukrainians kept steady and caught up. After 22-22, Yevhen Politko, Oleksandr Koval and Ivan Kryvobok stood out with well-directed blows to bring the set to a 25-22 close in favour of the home side. However, in the second set, the players of Mariusz Sordyl intercepted the initiative to level the score. In the third set, the Ukrainian team broke away with a 14-11 lead, but a long series of mistakes ruined everything for them. In the end, coach Volodymyr Romantsov's team saved two of three consecutive set points for Poland, but the decisive serve flew into the net. Ukraine also started the fourth set with a powerful 6-1 lead, but then they wasted a whole bunch of good opportunities to keep this advantage and ended up in an almost hopeless situation – 15-19. Thanks to a successful block and well-directed spikes by Politko the score was tied at 23-23. However, two big errors in the money time proved fatal for the Ukrainian team. Yevhen Politko topped the scorers’ charts with 17 points. Croatia vs. Belarus 1-3 (20-25, 19-25, 25-22, 18-25) Powerful Belarusian hits through the middle in the first two sets forced Croatia to recognise the opponents’ solid superiority in class. But it seemed Belarus were too early to believe they won and, having noticeably relaxed, they immediately received a response from the Croats and lost the third set. The Belarusians worked hard in the fourth set and, in the end, the players of Oleg Mikanovich took the right steps to the victory, bringing them very close to qualifying to the #EuroVolleyU20M finals. Uladzislau Davyskiba was the most prolific player on the court making 14 points for Belarus.

Bulgaria, Italy, Serbia, Poland make finals of #EuroVolleyU19W Luxembourg, April 28, 2018. Bulgaria, Italy, Serbia and Poland secured their spots at the Final Round of the 2018 CEV U19 Volleyball European Championship - Women in Albania after claiming victories in their respective qualification pools on Saturday.After Russia were the first to qualify for the finals on Friday, the remaining two tickets available to the pool winners of the second round, as well as the complete line-up for the third qualification round will become known on Sunday.Pool A in Zrenjanin (SRB)Serbia defeated the Netherlands in the last decisive match for the first place in Pool A. The Dutch will have another chance of securing their ticket to Albania in the third qualification round. Denmark finished third in the pool after a four-set win over Hungary.Hungary vs. Denmark 1-3 (22-25, 19-25, 25-11, 20-25)The volleyball fans in Zrenjanin saw an interesting match. Except for the third set, when they completely lost focus, Denmark were the better team and deservedly finished the tournament with a victory. Sofia Nørager Bisgaard contributed 19 points to the victory to become the best scorer of the match.Netherlands vs. Serbia 1-3 (30-28, 16-25, 15-25, 18-25)Serbia started with confidence and stayed in charge throughout the most part of the first set, but after 22-20 the Dutch surprised the hosts with several great points and went on to seize the initial lead. However, Serbia were not to be distracted. They continued in the same rhythm and easily grabbed the following three sets to take the first place in the tournament. Sara Caric was the best scorer of the game with 20 points for the winning side.Marijana Boricic, coach of Serbia: “It was a tough match from a psychological point of view. The Dutch are well prepared, but I think that we are the better team, and when my girls realised it on court, they started to be more relaxed and showed their best game. I congratulate them for this wonderful result.”Julien Van de Vyver, coach of the Netherlands: “I think there is no loser today. We are going to the third round and that's OK with me.”Pool B in Anapa (RUS)Slovenia shut out Finland in the direct battle for the second place in Pool B and qualified for the third qualification round. Hosts Russia had won the pool on Friday, booking their ticket to the finals in Albania.Finland vs. Slovenia 0-3 (20-25, 23-25, 20-25)The match started with a slight advantage for Slovenia, gained through the sharp serving of Alja Jerala for 5-1. Finland’s oach Luca Chiappini used a time-out, but Slovenia went far ahead to 10-3. Finland, headed by its captain Suvi Kokkonen, tried to reduce the score gap and at 13-16 Slovenia coach Boris Klokocovnik was forced to take a time-out. Finland started playing more consistently, using back-court spikes by Saana Lindgren, but Slovenia won several counter strikes to close it off at 25-20. Finland tried to regroup in the second set, but several mistakes in defence helped Slovenia to an 8-5 lead. The Slovenian players made several net violations while Finland found the right consistency in reception and in Kokkonen’s spiking, tying it at 17-17 and going 21-19 ahead. Klokocovnik used a time-out and the two teams started trading points, but Slovenia was luckier - 25-23. Slovenia showed their desire to win and with booming spikes by Ajda Scuka took a 10-5 lead in set 3. Poor reception by Slovenia allowed Finland to narrow their deficit to 15-16, but Eva Zatkovic served several aces in a row for 20-16 before Alja Jerala scored for the final 25-20. Suvi Kokkonen scored 20 times for Finland to top the game’s chart.Luca Chiappini, coach of Finland: “We could have played better. We made too many mistakes today.”Suvi Kokkonen, captain of Finland: “Everything we could do was not enough to win the game. We did not have a good pass today. We attacked only through a couple of players.”Boris Klokocovnik, coach of Slovenia: “It was a very nervous game for us. We wanted to win too badly. Finland have a good game in defence. We are happy to have won today.”Brina Bracko, player of Slovenia: “We tried to win, because it was our last chance to win. We have a lot of work to do to be better.”Pool C in Concorezzo (ITA)Italy’s second straight-setter in a row made them unreachable on top of Pool C. The race among the other three teams in the pool is still wide open before the last competition day on Sunday.Czech Republic vs. Norway 3-2 (25-19, 25-15, 23-25, 18-25, 15-7)The Czech Republic celebrated their first win in the tournament, but it took them five sets to overcome Norway’s resistance. In the opening set, the Czech spiker Denisa Pavlikova pushed her team forward to an easy win. Middle blockers Hana Judlova and Magdalena Jehlarova were on fire in the second set, also dominated by their team. However, Norway reopened the match after a balanced third set, closed with an ace by Tuva Aarestad. The fight went on in the fourth set. Two aces in a row by Birgitte Maaseide opened up Norway’s way to the tiebreak. In the end, it was the Czechs who prevailed, again thanks to Jehlarova’s amazing serve. She became the top scorer of the match with 23 points, including six aces.Erik Nezhoda, coach of the Czech Republic: “We absolutely had to win to stay in the run for qualification. We managed to do it after five sets, even if we didn’t play so well. Tomorrow we have to be at 100% against Italy. Otherwise we will have no chance to compete.”Austria vs. Italy 0-3 (16-25, 14-25, 15-25)The home team took advantage of their physical and technical superiority, never allowing the opponents to jeopardize the final result. The Azzurrine, led in scoring by Elena Pietrini (12 points) and Valeria Battista (10 points), dominated the first two sets. Austria had little to state in the third set as well and it was soon all over.Massimo Bellano, coach of Italy: “Qualification was our first goal and we have reached it. In our second match we played better Volleyball than yesterday. We made some mistakes at the serve, but this is normal. We are trying to raise our level high to compete with the best teams in Europe and all over the world.”Pool D in Portaria / Volos (GRE)It was a tight decider to determine the sole direct ticket to the finals from Pool D and although the game swung to and fro countless times, Bulgaria outshone the hosts for a hard-earned win over Greece, leaving the hosts in second and on their way to the third qualification round. Switzerland bagged their first win in the pool, downing Estonia in straight sets to retain slim hopes of staying alive in the competition.Switzerland vs. Estonia 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-22)Elisa Suriano led the scoring with 14 points for Switzerland, who proved far more efficient in attack for an overall comfortable victory.Frieder Strohm, coach of Switzerland: "It wasn't easy to bounce back after two defeats, but we started well, despite having our ups and downs. Now we need to wait and see if we can be the best of the 3rd-ranked teams to continue in round 3 of the qualifiers."Bulgaria vs. Greece 3-2 (25-13, 10-25, 25-20, 15-25, 15-11)Led by top scorers Borislava Saykova (17 points) and Aleksandra Milanova (16), Bulgaria outblocked Greece 18 to 9 (including eght stuffs from Saykova alone), countering the pressure that the home side applied from the service line producing 12 aces (five from captain Effrosyini Alexakou) to Bulgaria's nine. Alexakou was the overall best scorer of the match with 22 points.Asen Metodiev, coach of Bulgaria: "We are very happy. We dreamed about participating in the finals. The match was very difficult because we have the same quality of Volleyball as the Greek team do, but today God was with us and we won. The Greeks are a great team and I wish them the best of luck in the next round, because they deserve to be in the finals."Pool E in Humenne (SVK)Turkey managed their second win in the pool and got well within reach of a ticket to the finals in Albania. Hosts Slovakia claimed their first win in Humenne setting up a survival clash with Croatia on Sunday.Spain vs. Slovakia 0-3 (20-25, 12-25, 13-25)Slovakia dominated throughout the match, especially in attack and service. The first set was close, but the second and the third turned into an exhibition of the home team. Bianka Bodnarova, Simona Jelinkova and Karolina Fricova shared the top scoring honours with ten points each for Slovakia.Miguel Fuente, assistant coach of Spain: "We played very badly today. Our reception was awful and we produced too many mistakes. We came here to Slovakia to try to finish in second place, but after two losses we have no chance to do it. We will continue working and I think our team will improve in the future."Michal Matusov, coach of Slovakia: "We were concentrated, disciplined and I am satisfied with the performance of our team today. We have defended against their two most dangerous players and that was one of the keys to our victory. We need one more win tomorrow, against Croatia, and I hope that we will play as well as we did today."Croatia vs. Turkey 1-3 (25-22, 15-25, 17-25, 20-25)Croatia surprised the pre-favourites from Turkey with a good and brave performance, winning the first set 25-22. Turkey improved their game after the first set and eventually collected their second win in Humenne. Derya Cebecioglu outscored everyone else on the court, contributing 20 points (including five aces) to the victory.Miodrag Stojakovic, coach of Croatia: "We lost, but I think we did well. The players followed the game plan, but we made a lot of mistakes and a team like Turkey used it to their advantage. Tomorrow’s game will be important for us and for Slovakia. The winner will finish second, but also a loss in five sets could be enough to qualify for the third round."Sahin Catma, coach of Turkey: "We did not play well. Serving and reception are the two most important things in Volleyball and we did not play well at these skills. Our potential is bigger as we have shown, but what is important is to win. We will be ready for tomorrow.”Pool F in Ploiesti (ROU)Yet another five-setter was played in Pool F, as France snatched a tie-breaker victory over Belgium in Saturday’s only match in Ploiesti. The Belgians no longer have a shot at the top of the pool, but everything else is up for grabs and all teams are still in contention for Albania.Belgium vs. France 2-3 (20-25, 23-25, 25-22, 26-24, 12-15) The teams started the match showing excellent play in defence with Belgium eventually leading the way 16-14, paced by their captain Nikita De Paepe. With their solid attacks, France turned the score around before Amélie Rotar closed the opening set at 25-20. France were up by 8-6 at the first technical time-out of the second set, the score remained very close up to 15-15 and then was drawn again at 20-20 as both teams showed some excellent Volleyball. A very close battle unfolded in the final section of the set with France showing strong nerves to cash the final 25-23.France claimed an 8-7 lead in the early phases of the third set. Belgium stormed back to take a 16-11 advantage. They kept up their powerful attacks of Felice Vanassche and as France woke up a little late they could not prevent Belgium from winning the third set by 25-22. Belgium’s outside spiker Felice Vanassche led her team to an 8-4 and a 16-14 lead in the fourth set. France fought back up to 21-21, but then the nerves hit the girls in white. Belgium took over the initiative and won dramatically by 26-24.The Belgian girls showed great fighting spirit in set 5. The young Yellow Tigers took a 5-2 lead before France responded with an amazing Amélie Rotar who sealed their second victory in the tournament at 15-12, piling up an incredible contribution of as many as 36 points.Pool G in Vilsbiburg (GER)Poland snatched the first place in the pool and the ticket to the finals after a phenomenal comeback from two sets down against hosts Germany in the decisive last match in Vilsbiburg. The home team will have to settle for a spot in the third qualification round, while Latvia finished third in the pool by beating Portugal.Portugal vs. Latvia 1-3 (17-25, 14-25, 25-23, 14-25)After a slow start, the Latvian team were the dominant one, especially in the first two sets. In the third set, Portugal were often five points ahead and managed to preserve the lead for a 25-23 win. In the fourth set the team of coach Manuel Almeida were not able to maintain the level of play from the third and lost by a wide margin. Latvia’s Marta Kamēlija Levinska top scored with 24 points.Manuel Almeida, coach of Portugal: “We had some good scenes, but not nearly enough of them. In some parts of the game, we did not just not score our points, but we scored for the opponents.”Pavels Selivanovs, coach of Latvia: “We wanted to find a way to win our first game. We were able to do so, but we can still improve.”Poland vs. Germany 3-2 (20-25, 18-25, 26-24, 26-24, 15-12)What a match to wrap up the tournament in Vilsbiburg! The unbeaten teams of Germany and Poland squared off in dramatic fashion in a duel at the Ballsporthalle in Vilsbiburg that kept the 700 people in attendance on their toes. The match was intense, played with passion and evenly matched throughout the game. The German side won the first two sets in convincing fashion and had a 19-16 lead in the third. The set, however, went into overtime, with the Polish team giving everything they got, to prevent the 0-3 loss... And they were successful. They won the third set 26-24 and went on to win the fourth as well by the exact same score. Everything came down to a tiebreak, which was even more exciting. Poland led by 10-6, but Germany refused to give up and managed to tie the game at 12-12. But that was all for the Germans in this memorable match. In the end the Polish team won 15-12 and celebrated victorious. Poland’s Zuzanna Gorecka was the top scorer with 23 points.Ireneusz Waleczek, assistant coach of Poland: “Both Paulina Damaske and the second libero Julia Mazur played a major role in the comeback in the third and the fourth sets. We were mentally tough. Now we are very, very happy!”Martin Watne Frydnes, coach of Germany: “I am disappointed on the one hand; on the other, I am unbelievably proud of my team. We gave it everything we got in the tank. And even when we were completely exhausted, we still fought on. We want to take our second chance, though.”

QUALIFICATION ROUND, DAY III RESULTS POOL A Switzerland 0-3 Spain Bulgaria 0-3 Italy POOL B Russia 3-0 Israel POOL C Czech Republic 1-3 Denmark POOL D France 3-0 Slovenia Montenegro 1-3 Latvia POOL E Germany 3-0 Sweden Romania 3-0 Austria POOL F Portugal 3-1 Serbia POOL G Slovakia 1-3 Greece POOL H Ukraine 1-3 Poland Belarus 3-1 Croatia

QUALIFICATION ROUND II,DAY III RESULTS POOL A Hungary 1-3 Denmark Netherlands 1-3 Serbia POOL B Finland 0-3 Slovenia POOL C Czech Republic 3-2 Norway Austria 0-3 Italy POOL D Switzerland 3-0 Estonia Bulgaria 3-2 Greece POOL E Spain 0-3 Slovakia Croatia 1-3 Turkey POOL F Belgium 2-3 France POOL G Latvia 1-3 Portugal Germany 3-2 Poland

QUALIFICATION ROUND, DAY III POOL A Switzerland - Spain Bulgaria - Italy POOL B Russia - Israel POOL C Czech Republic - Italy POOL D France - Slovenia Montenegro - Latvia POOL E Germany - Sweden Romania - Austria POOL F Portugal - Serbia POOL G Slovakia - Greece POOL H Ukraine - Poland Belarus - Croatia WATCH THE GAMES AT https://www.laola1.tv/en-at/channel/volleyball

QUALIFICATION ROUND II,DAY III POOL A Hungary - Denmark Netherlands - Serbia POOL B Finland - Slovenia POOL C Czech Republic - Norway Austria - Italy POOL D Switzerland - Estonia Bulgaria - Greece POOL E Spain - Slovakia Croatia - Turkey POOL F Belgium - France POOL G Latvia - Portugal Germany - Poland WATCH THE GAMES AT https://www.laola1.tv/en-at/channel/volleyball

Serbia and Portugal to battle for ticket to #EuroVolleyU20M Finals on Saturday Luxembourg, April 27, 2018. Serbia and Portugal will be locking horns on Saturday in Zrenjanin to determine which team finishes top of the charts in Pool F and will join co-hosts the Netherlands and Belgium in the Final Round of the 2018 CEV U20 Volleyball European Championship – Men. As many as 12 matches across eight pools took place on Friday with the pre-favourite teams recording comprehensive victories as they vie for a coveted spot to compete in the Final Round scheduled for mid-July. The competition continues through the weekend and will determine the eight teams progressing straight to the Finals – and another eight due to contest the third and last qualifying round in late June. Pool A in Corigliano Calabro (ITA) Bulgaria vs. Switzerland 3-1 (23-25, 25-15, 25-18, 25-19) Italy vs. Spain 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 21-25, 25-11) Hosts Italy started their campaign with a 3-1 victory in their matchup with Spain. They substantially controlled the match from start to end, catching a good start in the first set and imposing their rhythm in the second as well. The third set, however, was a different story with Spain able to change the course of the game and to step up the level of their performance. As the match resumed following the break at the end of the third set, the Azzurrini found back to their game and easily stormed to a 3-1 victory. Diego Cantagalli and Daniele Lavia top scored with 17 points apiece as Jordi Ramon Ferragut registered 18 for Spain. On Saturday, Italy will be playing Bulgaria that earlier in the afternoon beat Switzerland 3-1 as well. Pool B in Anapa (RUS) Israel vs. Estonia 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 26-24, 25-18) The first set of the matchup featuring Estonia and Israel was a close fight; Estonia edged ahead at 8-7 but Israel wiped out the Estonian lead to make it 15-10 in their favour with attacks of Noah Bar Wolf. Estonia fought back to 13-15 after a timeout asked by their coach through some powerful spikes of Albert Hurt and Tarvo Täht. Israel coach Yossef Geva stopped the game as well and after actions resumed, Israel comfortably cruised towards a 25-19 set win. Estonia regrouped in the second set leading 6-3 and forced Geva into an early timeout. Estonia had an 8-4 advantage before Israel levelled the score at 10-10. Estonia got back their initial lead at 19-16 and finished the set 25-21 with powerful spikes of Albert Hurt. The third set started with Israel leading the way at 8-4 and despite all efforts made by Estonia to stop their opponents, David Ido and Enosh Shtift propelled Israel to a compelling 16-9 advantage. Estonia tried to reduce the gap (20-22) with spikes of Mihkel Varblane but Israel were able to seal a 26-24 win. It was a close fight in the early stages of the fourth set as well until Israel edged ahead by two points at the second technical timeout. Estonia coach Urmas Tali stopped the game at 21-17 for the opposition; however, Israel were not to stop and eventually secured a 3-1 victory. Yossef Geva, head coach of Israel: “It was a tough match featuring two equally strong teams. We made less mistakes and we won. I would like to thank the organisers for the excellent conditions they have provided for this tournament.” Ido David, player of Israel: “It was our first match of the tournament. We showed good team spirit and we fought for every ball.” Urmas Tali, head coach of Estonia: “This match was too tough for us. We had problems in attack. Our opponent, on the other hand, took the initiative and we ended up losing this match.” Albert Hurt, player of Estonia: “We could not score points. We had to take many risks but we made mistakes.” Hungary vs. Russia 0-3 (17-25, 14-25, 10-25) Russia started their campaign in Anapa playing Hungary, and the hosts soon set the tempo of the game (9-4) before claiming a compelling 16-8 lead at the second technical timeout. Hungary tried to respond with the spikes of Barna Frigyes Szabo and Balint Tomanoczy but Russia’s defence made the difference as the home side won the first set 25-17. Maxim Sapozhkov and Ivan Kuznetcov propelled Russia to an early 8-4 lead in the second set while Hungary struggled with their own mistakes. Russia stormed to 22-11 and the hosts comfortably closed the second set with a landslide 25-14 win. The course of the game did not change in the third set with Russia leading 8-3 and 11-4 and no timeout asked by Hungary coach Tibor Tomanoczy could produce some effect. Russia moved the score to 20-7 and Vitalii Dikarev finished it all off with a block for 25-10. Tibor Tomanoczy, head coach of Hungary: “We did what we could do today. Russia was very strong.” Andrey Nozdrin, head coach of Russia: “This was the first match for us in this tournament and we were nervous in the beginning. I am satisfied that we won this match but we need to work further.” Maxim Sapozhkov, player of Russia: “We did not make mistakes in the game but we need to improve our game, especially in spiking.” Pool C in Zdar nad Sazavou (CZE) Finland vs. Denmark 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-17)The first match of the #EuroVolleyU20M qualifier held in the Czech Republic was a truly exciting one. Both teams started the game a little nervously and made a number of mistakes. The first set was extremely close with Finland cashing their second set point for 25-23. In the beginning of the second set, Denmark played much better than they had before and as a result, they claimed a 14-12 lead. However, shortly afterwards they made some little mistakes and Finland turned the score to 21-18 in their favour with good attacks and big help from their great fans. The Finns eventually won the second set 25-22. The third set was not that dramatic. Finland played much better than their opponents did and managed a comfortable 25-17 win to seal their 3-0 victory. Janne Heikkinen, head coach of Finland celebrated the first win in Zdar nad Sazavou: “I am happy with this result. I think that we managed to play our own game. Denmark played extremely well too, but today we were better. We are happy with the result.” Jørgen Breinholm Jørgensen, head coach of Denmark was not too sad: “My feeling is that... we were close to winning some sets. The Finnish team was more patient and played with all of their spikers from start to end whereas we had some ‘power cuts’ in attack. However, it was a great experience for our young team.” Pool D in Herceg Novi (MNE) Latvia vs. France 0-3 (21-25, 18-25, 14-25) Latvia and France opened the programme of the tournament in Herceg Novi as both teams showed a great determination to win. At the beginning of the first set, both teams served extremely well and a close race unfolded until Latvia edged ahead (8-6) at the first technical timeout. France closed in with two fantastic spikes from their middle blocker and had a three-point cushion at the second technical timeout, before they went on to win the set 25-21. France started the second set by immediately imposing their tempo, leading 8-4 and displaying a very solid performance, which resulted in a comfortable 25-18 win. Latvia started very aggressively in the third set, leading the way at 3-1 but they soon trailed 7-8 at the first technical timeout. France continued to improve their level as the match progressed and showing more accuracy and efficiency in all aspects of the game, they imposed their rule to seal a well-deserved 3-0 victory. Montenegro vs. Slovenia 3-2 (27-25, 25-27, 25-21, 19-25, 15-13) The second match of the first competition day in Herceg Novi pitted hosts Montenegro against Slovenia. It was an extremely exciting game where the home side made many mistakes but the hosts emerged victorious after showing great character and determination with Milutin Pavicevic top scoring with 25 points. Slovenia started well but Montenegro won the first set 27-25. The second set, on the other hand, ended exactly the other way around. The third one was a close race with Montenegro making the difference with their serves (25-21). Slovenia responded by taking the fourth 25-19 and leading the way at the side switch in the tiebreak. After that, the Slovenian team made a few mistakes that Montenegro used to their advantage to win the set 15-13 and the match 3-2. Pool E in Ploiesti (ROU) Sweden vs. Austria 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 25-20, 17-25, 15-13) Sweden got back on track after their 1-3 loss to Romania on the opening day to claim a very close and thrilling match with Austria. Sweden caught the best start, anchored by their setter Oskar Von Sydow and won the first set 25-20.Austria claimed the lead by the end of the second set and brought it home at 25-22 but could not keep the same pace in the third where Sweden put a lot of pressure on their opponents with the right combination of serving, spiking and blocking. Austria came back strong in the fourth set where they played spotless and easily won 25-17.Finally, it all came down to the tie-break where Austria seemed to be on the right track when Sweden outside spiker Daniel Gruvaeus managed to put an end to Austria’s hopes of success, thus winning the set and match at 15-13. Pool F in Zrenjanin (SRB) Serbia vs. Norway 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-20) On the second day of competition at the #EuroVolleyU20M qualifier in Zrenjanin, hosts Serbia easily beat Norway 3-0 and on Saturday will take on Portugal to determine the eventual pool winner.“I am satisfied with the result. We played well for the first two sets, but we thought that our rivals would beat themselves and it is always dangerous because you can easily lose control of the game. Luckily, for us that did not happen, as we showed we do have quality and even though it was harder than we expected, we wrapped it up in three sets. A sleepless night is ahead of my staff and myself since we have to figure out how to play against the Portuguese team now and try to do our best in the deciding match tomorrow,” said Vladimir Vasovic, head coach of Serbia. Pool G in Humenne (SVK) Greece vs. Turkey 0-3 (19-25, 15-25, 26-28) Turkey dominated the first two sets with a consistent performance overall. The Most Valuable Player from the last edition of the CEV U19 European Championship, Adis Lagumdzija was almost unstoppable. Greece set the pace (7-2 and 16-11) in the third set, but Turkey came back and had four match points at 24-20. Greece turned the score in their favour at 25-24, but wasted two set points and finally lost 26-28.Akif Gökhan Öner, head coach of Turkey: “This was our first game in two weeks. We played well in the first two sets, but after that, we somehow stopped. This is Volleyball, finally we won in three sets and this is important.” Panagiotis Lakasas, head coach of Greece: “We were very bad with our passing in the first two sets. After that, we changed tactics using a jump float serve and it worked better. We eventually lost, but we played against a very good team. We miss four players here, but we try to do our best. Tomorrow there will be the most important game for us against Slovakia; we will try to win that one and move on to the next round of qualifications.”Pool H in Cherkasy (UKR) Croatia vs. Ukraine 0-3 (16-25, 17-25, 18-25) Croatia team captain Tomislav Mitrasinovic managed to open the match in favour of his side but Ukraine responded swiftly scoring as many as seven straight points. This set the tone for Ukraine’s supremacy in the match with the hosts standing out especially with their blocking game. Oleksandr Koval, Denys Veletskyi, Borys Yefymenko and Yevhen Politko did an extremely good job – as much as did their libero Andrii Zhukov. The second set went pretty much the same way and only in the third Croatia were able to put up a fight. At 10-10, however, with Yefymenko serving, Ukraine scored five times in a row and so they paved their way towards a 3-0 victory. Belarus vs. Poland 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-20) Many expected this match to be a close fight but Belarus were able to control the game in the most important moments – which resulted in a relatively surprising 3-0 victory. The plot was always the same as the players coached by Oleg Mikanovich managed to score five points in a row at the end of each set. They did so after the score stood at 18-18 in the first set and 20-20 in the following sets. Belarus player Uladzislau Charnysh did his best and scored as many as 15 points for the winning side.

Russia first to qualify for #EuroVolleyU19W Finals in Albania Luxembourg, April 27, 2018. Russia, who are the U18 European champions from last year, are the first team to join hosts Albania in the Final Round of this year’s CEV U19 Volleyball European Championship – Women. They did so after recording their second win in as many matches in Anapa, storming to a 3-0 dispatch of Slovenia to go with yesterday’s victory by the same score over Finland. On Saturday, Bulgaria and Greece will fight for the top spot in Pool D as much as Serbia and the Netherlands will be doing in Pool A – while Germany and Poland are set for a similar showdown in Pool G. The winners of the seven second-round qualifiers will all progress to the Finals scheduled for early September in Albania. The runners-up and the third-placed team with the best score across all pools will have one more opportunity to achieve this feat in the third and last qualifying stage in late June. Pool A in Zrenjanin (SRB) The Netherlands vs. Hungary 3-0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-17) In the first match of the second day at the #EuroVolleyU19W qualifier in Zrenjanin, the Netherlands beat Hungary without any major problems 3-0 in just 64 minutes. The difference in class between the two teams was obvious and Hungary never posed a real threat to the Dutch side. “I think that Hungary fell under the pressure of having to stay in the tournament. We were not so much better today, but we knew how to make the most of their mistakes,” said Julien Van de Vyver, head coach of the Dutch team. Denmark vs. Serbia 1-3 (10-25, 21-25, 25-22, 16-25) In the second match of the day, hosts Serbia struggled with Denmark but ultimately won 3-1 and set the stage for the decider with the Netherlands on Saturday. After winning the opening set with ease, Serbia pretty much suffered in this match. The Danish girls were an equal opponent and gave quite a scare to the home fans. However, in the end, the sheer quality of the Serbian side determined the eventual winner of this fixture.“We tried to prepare as much as we can for the matchup with the Dutch team coming up tomorrow, so we struggled a bit and the result shows all of our weaknesses. We have to be at least 50% better to stand a chance of winning this tournament,” said Marijana Boričić, head coach of Serbia.Pool B in Anapa (RUS) Russia vs. Slovenia 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-18) After claiming Thursday’s opening match with Finland, Russia secured their participation in the #EuroVolleyU19W Finals after recording a 3-0 victory in their matchup with Slovenia. However, it was not that easy since Slovenia jumped to an 8-6 lead in the first set with the help of Ajda Scuka and Brina Bracko, and the visitors set the pace of the game at the second technical timeout as well (16-11). Russia trailed 13-19 despite many substitutions but eventually fought back to 17-20 with the attacks killed by Oxana Yakushina. Slovenia coach Boris Klokocovnik asked for a break but Russia levelled the count at 21-all before scoring four in a row to win the set. Russia claimed a small lead at the first technical timeout of the second set (8-7) and widened their advantage to 16-12 despite Slovenia’s attempts to fight back. Klokocovnik made a number of changes to the starting six but Russia comfortably won the second set 25-19 with three blocks from Viktoriia Pushina. Slovenia stormed to an 8-4 lead in the third set to stay alive in the match but Russia fought back to 14-all. Pushina and Tatiana Kadochkina eventually helped Russia secure a 3-0 victory and with it a ticket to the Final Round as well. Boris Klokocovnik, head coach of Slovenia: “The Russian team was the better one today. They served better and put a lot of pressure on us. I did not like how we performed today. Moreover, Russia is a more experienced team.” Alja Jerala, captain of Slovenia: “We started very well. We had a lot of energy and we had good reception. Nevertheless, in the end we made mistakes. Russia was stronger than we were.”Alexander Karikov, head coach of Russia: “Our main aim was to win and we won. I am very satisfied with the result. I was a very difficult match and we showed our character.” Viktoriia Pushina, player of Russia: “I am very happy because we won the match and the tournament. It was difficult for us. We made mistakes but we could stabilise our game.” Pool C in Concorezzo (ITA) Austria vs. Czech Republic 3-2 (13-25, 25-17, 25-20, 3-25, 15-13) A sensational Austria, against all odds, stormed to their first victory over Czech Republic in the opening match of the competition. The Czech dominated the first set but were unprepared to the great reaction of Austria, which, inspired by Jasmin Haslinger, won the second set and easily cruised through the third (8-3, 18-10) as well. Thanks to some substitutions, the Czech Republic tied the match with a landslide win in the fourth (25-3), but Austria turned the tables in the tiebreak with a decisive comeback from 10-12 and closed the match thanks to the powerful arm of Anamarija Galic, best scorer (21) and tallest player of Pool C (197 cm).Benedikt Frank, head coach of Austria: “It is really crazy to win a match after you lost a set like we did in the fourth one. It was totally unexpected, but we have tough ladies that are really good in finding motivation to come back and leave behind what was going on before. I am very proud of them. To us, this match was like a little final, because we never beat the Czech Republic before tonight: now, on to the next final!” Italy vs. Norway 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-11) Italy had more problems than expected to defeat Norway in three straight sets. The home team, cheered by a crowd of more than 550 supporters, had troubles in coping with the Norwegian star player Emilie Olimstad, who moved the score to 17-15 by scoring five points in a row, but in the end the Azzurrine managed to close the first set in their favour and did so quite easily (25-18). Norway was an even worse headache for the hosts in the second set: the home team trailed 11-14, but the serve of Fatim Kone made the crucial break with a string of five points for the hosts. The third set, on the other hand, went smoothly and resulted in an easy win for Italy (8-5, 16-9, 25-11).Magnus Borge Johansen, head coach of Norway: “We know that Italy are a really good team, and yet we managed to put them in trouble in the first part of the match. We are very happy about the two first sets, while in the third the difference was too big. We are going to rest and will try to play again like this in the next two games.”Marina Lubian, player of Italy: “It is always important to win the first match, but I think we could have played better, especially in the first two sets. In my opinion, we showed who we really are only in the third set, even if there is still a lot to work to do. We have to improve especially in block and defence.” Pool D in Portaria / Volos (GRE) Bulgaria and hosts Greece remained undefeated and secured at least a berth in the next round of the #EuroVolleyU19W qualifiers, but one of the two can grab a direct ticket from Pool D to the finals in Albania next September when they come head-to-head on Saturday at Portaria. Bulgaria vs. Switzerland 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-14)Bulgaria made a flawless performance against Switzerland, with Dobrina Hristoskova once again leading the scoring on 20 points. “We played very well, with very few mistakes,” said Bulgaria coach Asen Metodiev after the match. “Our service was better than yesterday and I hope tomorrow we can produce the same good quality elements.” Estonia vs. Greece 0-3 (24-26, 14-25, 10-25) Greece struggled in the first set against Estonia, but coach Nikolaos Boutsouris shifted the team around a bit and the home side quickly picked up, with Dimitra Tziarli coming off the bench for 5/5 kills plus five blocks and a total of 10 points, as Effrosyni Alexakou and Georgia Tselepi shared top-scoring honours with 11 points each.“In the first set we had our mind on tomorrow’s game against Bulgaria, instead of focusing on the matter at hand - Estonia. But now we need to improve for the last day, as Bulgaria are a level above us in readiness,” said Boutsouris after the game.Pool E in Humenne (SVK) Croatia vs. Spain 3-1 (16-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-16) Spain started the match with 11 straight points as they took the opening set 25-16, but Croatia improved the level of their performance after changes to their starting line-up and eventually won the match in four sets.Pascual Saurin, coach of Spain: “The first set and part of the second were good from our side, but after that we started to make a lot of mistakes. From the second set, we were not good in reception and it is difficult to play without reception. We need more experience.”Ivica Radocaj, assistant coach of Croatia: “We started slowly, as some of the girls participate for the first time in their career in such an important tournament. After some changes we improved, our wing-spiker Luna Becic was our key player. Our goal is to qualify to the third round, because we think that Turkey is the strongest team here.” Turkey vs. Slovakia 3-0 (28-26, 25-14, 25-15) In the second match of the day, hosts Slovakia wasted a compelling 19-13 lead in the first set of their game with heavy favourite Turkey and failed to cash two set points as well. Turkey eventually won the first set 28-26 and after that, they easily wrapped up the match in three. Sahin Catma, head coach of Turkey: “We did not play well in the first set. We expected that, because the first match in a tournament is always difficult. However, after that we started to play our game, we are happy that we won, but we need to play better in order to be successful.” Michal Matušov, head coach of Slovakia: “We lost the first set because of our own mistakes and it is a pity. The match could have developed differently if we had won the first set. Every set, every point is important in this tournament, so we are unhappy about that. Anyway, we have two important games ahead of us against Spain and Croatia and we need to focus on them.” Pool F in Ploiesti (ROU) France vs. Belarus 3-0 (26-24, 25-22, 25-23) France and Belarus opened the programme in Pool F on Friday afternoon with the young “Bleues” edging past their opponents in three sets (26-24, 25-22, 25-23) to open their quest for a ticket to the Finals on a very high note. Although both teams looked very determined, Belarus struggled to find a way to stand France’s rhythm with the young French girls showing more playing options and changing gear down the final stretch in each of the three sets. Romania vs. Belgium 3-2 (17-25, 25-16, 25-15, 16-25, 15-10) On the second day of action in Ploiesti, the young Romanians claimed a hard-fought victory over Belgium after five closely contested sets. The young “Yellow Tigers” took the lead in the first set and the players coached by Fien Callens put up a fight setting the pace up until the end (25-17). Romania took their revenge in the second set where they set the tempo from start to finish. The home team continued displaying a great performance in the third set as well, not allowing Belgium to come back. The visitors responded by doing the same in set four, which they took at 25-16. Romania changed the course of the match once again in the tiebreak where the home team reached the victory at 15-10 to celebrate their first success in the tournament after losing 2-3 to Belarus the day before. Pool G in Vilsbiburg (GER) Poland vs. Portugal 3-0 (25-18, 25-9, 25-10) Poland claimed their second 3-0 victory in as many matches at the European qualifier in Vilsbiburg. Some 24 hours after the 3-0 win they had recorded to start the tournament against Latvia, the team of head coach Waldemar Kawka stormed to yet another 3-0 victory against Portugal. The underdogs from the Iberian Peninsula got off to a good start, which resulted in an early 9-6 lead. Midway through the first set, however, the young Polish team gathered momentum, but the Portuguese would not go down without a fight. Poland eventually claimed the first set 25-18, thus living up to their status of pre-favourites in this fixture. There was no doubt about the Polish dominance in the second and third sets. It is noteworthy to single out a couple of impressive jump serves by Oliwia Baluk, who moved the score from 2-1 to 13-1 while standing behind the service line. Baluk scored a total of 13 points, thus finishing as top scorer for her team. Marlene Pereira scored five times for Portugal.Portugal coach Manuel Almeida, was quite satisfied with the first set: “We played a very consistent first set, made a few mistakes and almost managed to keep the match equal. However, Poland took their game to the next level afterwards and we were not able to keep their pace anymore.” His Polish colleague Waldemar Kawka had a different view of the game: “We were too nervous and we made too many mistakes in the first set. After that, we improved, especially with our serve.” With the last match against Germany in mind, the Polish coach added, “Germany is the favourite to win this tournament but we want to cause an upset.” Latvia vs. Germany 0-3 (8-25, 18-25, 11-25) The qualification tournament held in Vilsbiburg is heading towards the grand finale: just a few hours after Poland beat Portugal 3-0, Germany also won their second game in a row. The team of head coach Martin Watne Frydnes stormed to a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Latvia. Saturday’s matchup between Germany and Poland will be the final showdown with a coveted ticket to the European Championship in Albania in September at stake. The German victory was never really in danger. In the first and third sets, the young ‘Schmetterlinge’ were far superior. The second set was more competitive but the Germans persevered to secure a 3-0 victory. All in all Germany showed a consistent and stable performance. Taking into consideration that some of the German players had to sit out the match because of a gastroenteritis the team’s performance was even more remarkable. Lina Alsmeier and Luisa Keller (13 points apiece), Josepha Bock (12) and Romy Jatzko (9) set the pace for the home side. Marta Kamelija Levinska (8) was the best scorer for the losing team. Latvia’s coach Pavels Selivanovs was sparing of words after his team’s loss: “No comment. Yesterday against Poland we were afraid, and today the same.” Germany coach Martin Watne Frydnes sounded already focussed on Saturday’s match against Poland: “Now regeneration is on the schedule and then we are getting ready for Poland. We need to be in good shape for tomorrow’s match. I think the chances of winning are 50:50, and with the support of our fans we want to bring our A-game.”

QUALIFICATION ROUND DAY II RESULTS POOL A Bulgaria 3-1 Switzerland Italy 3-1 Spain POOL B Israel 3-1 Estonia Hungary 0-3 Russia POOL C Finland 3-0 Denmark POOL D Latvia 0-3 France Montenegro 3-2 Slovenia POOL E Sweden 3-2 Austria POOL F Serbia 3-0 Norway POOL G Greece 0-3 Turkey POOL H Croatia 0-3 Ukraine Poland 0-3 Belarus

QUALIFICATION ROUND II, DAY II RESULTS POOL A Netherlands 3-0 Hungary Denmark 1-3 Serbia POOL B Russia 3-2 Slovenia POOL C Austria 3-2 Czech Republic Norway 0-3 Italy POOL D Bulgaria 3-0 Switzerland Estonia 0-3 Greece POOL E : Croatia 3-1 Spain Slovakia 0-3 Turkey POOL F France 3-0 Belarus Romania 3-2 Belgium POOL G Poland 3-0 Portugal Germany 3-0 Latvia

Well but thanks to this video , I just discovered how beautiful Slovakia anthem is btw I (almost) understand the lyrics

Torun will host the 2021 Indoor European Championship.

QUALIFICATION ROUND DAY II POOL A Bulgaria - Switzerland Italy - Spain POOL B Israel - Estonia Hungary - Russia POOL C Finland - Denmark POOL D Latvia - France Montenegro - Slovenia POOL E Sweden - Austria POOL F Serbia - Norway POOL G Greece - Turkey POOL H Croatia - Ukraine Poland - Belarus WATCH THE GAMES AT https://www.laola1.tv/en-at/channel/volleyball

QUALIFICATION ROUND II, DAY II POOL A Netherlands - Hungary Denmark - Serbia POOL B Russia - Slovenia POOL C Austria - Czech Republic Norway - Italy POOL D Bulgaria - Switzerland Estonia - Greece POOL E : Croatia - Spain Slovakia - Turkey POOL F France - Belarus Romania - Belgium POOL G Poland - Portugal Germany - Latvia WATCH THE GAMES AT https://www.laola1.tv/en-at/channel/volleyball

Pre-favourites record speedy wins on opening day of #EuroVolleyU19W qualifiers Luxembourg, April 26, 2018. The race for a spot in the Final Round of the 2018 CEV U19 Volleyball European Championship – Women started on Thursday with eight matches across five pools. The pre-favourite teams – Serbia, the Netherlands, Russia, Bulgaria, Greece, Germany and Poland – lived up to the expectations as they all recorded comfortable wins while Belarus and Romania delivered a battle lasting five sets in Ploiesti, with the visitors emerging victorious at the tiebreak. The eventual winners of the seven second-round qualifiers will secure their participation in the #EuroVolleyU19W Finals due to take place in early September in Albania. Pool A in Zrenjanin (SRB) Denmark vs. The Netherlands 0-3 (20-25, 20-25, 19-25) In the opening match of the #EuroVolleyU19W qualifier in Zrenjanin, the Netherlands beat Denmark 3-0 in just 72 minutes. The Danish girls managed to put up a fight with the persistent Dutch side in the initial stages of all three sets, but the Oranjes would pull off and easily wrap it up to take their first victory at the tournament. “This is a very important victory for my team even though we did not play our best. However, this is a new environment for us and the three points is all that matters now,” said Sarah van Aalen, team captain of the Dutch side. Serbia vs. Hungary 3-0 (25-22, 25-10, 25-21) In the second match of the day, hosts Serbia overpowered Hungary with the same result (3-0). In the first and the last set, the Hungarian girls were an equal rival, but they could not capitalise on their good game. Serbia were more efficient in the deciding moments and deservedly booked their first three points.“It is good that we won 3-0, because we were under a lot of pressure to perform well in the first match in front of the home crowd. We struggled in reception and we have to work on that. This was not our best game but we got the job done,” said Marijana Boričić, head coach of Serbia. Pool B in Anapa (RUS) Finland vs. Russia 0-3 (17-25, 20-25, 19-25) Russia and Finland opened the programme of the tournament organised at Voleygrad in Anapa. After a close start to the match, Russia’s Viktoriia Pushina stopped the Finnish spikers to make it 8-6 for the home side. After that, with a series of attacks from the wings, Polina Shemanova forced Finland head coach Luca Chiappini to use his first timeout. Finland tried to regroup with the help of Saana Lindgren, but Russia comfortably sailed towards a 25-17 win. The situation changed completely in the second set. Finland caught a flying start with the attacks of Suvi Kokkonen (5-1) but could not hold on to their advantage as Russia soon fought back to 8-7. Finland missed several attacks and the hosts found the right holes in the Finnish defence to move the score to 21-17 before Tatiana Kadochkina ended the set 25-20. Russia gained a slight advantage (8-5) in the early stages of the third set with attacks of Valentina Bachinina but several service errors helped Finland decrease the gap to 11-12. After a double substitution, Russia changed gear and eventually secured a 3-0 win. Luca Chiappini, head coach of Finland: “It was a good match for us. We did what we could. Russia is a very strong team. For my team this kind of match is a very good experience.” Suvi Kokkonen, team captain of Finland: “We tried our best but we did not play our game. We need to practice more in order to perform better.”Alexander Karikov, head coach of Russia: “This was the first match of the tournament and my team was a little bit nervous. We made many own mistakes. I am satisfied with the result and we will continue to work hard.” Valentina Bachinina, player of Russia: “We won the game and I am happy. We have to improve our performance to reduce the number of mistakes we made today.” Pool D in Portaria / Volos (GRE) Estonia vs. Bulgaria 0-3 (12-25, 12-25, 16-25) Bulgaria and Greece opened their #EuroVolleyU19W campaigns with wins in the mountain resort of Portaria, central Greece. However, while Bulgaria produced a show of power against Estonia for a straight-set sweep, Greece struggled against Switzerland, dropping a set on the way.Bulgaria were led by Dobrina Hristoskova who scored 16 points and Aleksandra Milanova who added 13, as the young Lionesses blocked Estonia 8 stuffs to 3 and served nine aces to Estonia's none.“Our girls played well and followed our tactics. We are happy we started with a victory,” said Bulgaria coach Asen Metodiev after the game. Greece vs. Switzerland 3-1 (25-21, 25-12, 23-25, 25-19) Hosts Greece followed Bulgaria’s lead with a 3-1 win over Switzerland. With 22 points from team captain Effrosyni Alexakou and six aces (18 points) by Effrosyni Bakodimou, Greece overwhelmed Switzerland in attacking, to counter the visitors’ superior blocking (8 vs. 14).“I was afraid we would have ups and downs in our performance due to a lack of friendly games. However, I think we played well for an opening match. We will be improving day-by-day,” said Greece's head coach Nikolaos Boutsouris. Pool F in Ploiesti (ROU) Belarus vs. Romania 3-2 (17-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-15, 15-10) Hosts Romania tried to cause a sensation while playing the bronze medal winners from last year’s U18 European Championship but they ended up losing in five sets at the end of a marathon match with Belarus. Romania came out with all guns blazing, winning the first set but Belarus responded by stepping up their efforts in defence, thus forcing the home team to make many mistakes and restoring the balance in the match. Romania cruised to a 16-12 lead in the third set and they eventually took it home at 25-19. Belarus got back on track in set four leading the way at both technical time-outs (8-6, 16-13), ultimately cruising to a 25-15 win. The tiebreak was quite one-sided as the home team could not use their chances of causing a sensation and Belarus eventually celebrated a hard-fought 3-2 victory. Pool G in Vilsbiburg (GER) Latvia vs. Poland 0-3 (14-25, 14-25, 15-25) Poland needed only 67 minutes to record a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Latvia to open the programme of the tournament in Vilsbiburg. Poland rushed to an 8-1 lead in the opening set and even though Latvia put up a fight, Poland easily secured a compelling 25-14 win. Poland enjoyed an obvious physical edge over their opponent and especially their 202 cm tall opposite hitter Magdalena Stysiak caused many problems to the young Latvians. Stysiak top scored in the end with 11 points – as many as those recorded by Aleksandra Gryka. Irbe Andike Lazda scored seven times for Latvia in their losing effort. Latvia coach, Pavels Selivanovs, was not too thrilled about his team’s performance. “I am lost for words. My team was way too scared of Poland.” His Polish colleague Waldemar Kawka, on the other hand, was satisfied with the result, but not so much with the performance of his team. “We made too many mistakes, we have to improve on that for the remainder of the tournament,” he said. Germany vs. Portugal 3-0 (25-10, 25-11, 25-19) Germany emulated Poland as they recorded a comprehensive 3-0 victory as well as they played Portugal on Thursday late afternoon. The team coached by Martin Watne Frydnes obviously dominated the first and second sets, as Germany’s captain Corina Glaab and her teammates found little resistance on the other side of the net. The third set, on the other hand, was a close affair up to 14-all but the Germans pulled away after the second technical timeout to secure a 3-0 victory. Romy Jatzko was the best scorer for Team Germany with 14 points, as Daniela Ferreira registered nine for Portugal. “We brought a very young team to Vilsbiburg. Most of our girls are under 17 and are here to gain experience on an international level. The match against a strong German team was hard on the one hand, but we can take a lot away from this game on the other. All in all, I am pretty satisfied with my team’s performance,” said Portugal coach Manuel Almeida. Germany coach Martin Watne Frydnes was happy about his team’s 3-0 victory: “The opponent did not challenge us as much as other opponents will do. It can get a little difficult to maintain focus and discipline. Despite a few exceptions, I think we did a pretty good job.” Germany will play Latvia and Poland on Friday and Saturday respectively to complete their duties in the tournament.