CLVolley Power: Together they stand, together they fight
Story of the day
The fans of the European Volleyball witnessed a very special CLVolley Wednesday - with important matches in both the men’s and the women’s competition taking place. But besides the big question of who is going to Quarters or Playoffs in Europe’s top club competition, the teams who entered the courts on February 15, reminded the whole Volleyball family about the power of the sport.
А week after the devastating earthquake in Türkiye and Syria, the Turkish teams competing in the CEV Champions League - Volley, fought once again on the European Volleyball stage.
Some won, some lost, but all together, united even with their opponents, stayed stronger in the face of the disaster to show once again that Volleyball can be this special sport of bringing people together even in the hardest of times.
Fenerbahçe Opet Istanbul 3-0 ŁKS Commercecon ŁÓDŹ
“As a way to hold on to life,” as Fenerbahçe Opet Istanbul captain Eda Erdem stated before the match against ŁKS Commercecon ŁÓDŹ, the team of Istanbul entered the court on Wednesday, ready to fight for each point. This was their way of showing the (Volleyball) World that sports can become an important tool on the road to rebuilding from scratch.
The players from Istanbul were wearing black ribbons as a way to honour the victims of the disaster, as a moment of silence was observed before the first referee whistle as well - a sign of respect and a time for reflection.
Concentrated and motivated to seize the victory, aiming at finishing second in Pool D, the Fenerbahçe squad reached the goal at 3-0, outclassing the opponent on all Volleyball counts - 53 to 40 winning spikes, 12 to eight kill blocks, two to zero aces.
Melissa Vargas, who was named MVP of the game, topped the charts, recording 31 points to her name. And despite this outstanding number, she said after the game that playing in such a situation was not an easy task to do, requiring mental health and concentration.
Melissa Vargas“It was a good match for us. It was difficult for us to play when Türkiye's situation is like it is. I wish everything will get better soon in our country. We tried to show ourselves and we won. I am happy to receive the MVP award. I tried to deliver the maximum. We came second in the group. A nice and clear result for us.”
VakifBank Istanbul 1-3 Igor Gorgonzola Novara
Igor Gorgonzola Novara secured their place at the Quarters of #CLVolleyW, while reigning champs VakifBank will have to go through the Playoffs stage.
Over 2050 people attended the game. The full income of the event will go to charity, to support the victims of the devastating earthquake. The junior women national team of Ireland, among others, attended the game as well since they are currently on practice sessions in Milan.
Both clubs donated for a charity bid 3 jerseys (Gabi, Daalderop and Egonu for Vakifbank; Bosetti, Chirichella and Karakurt for Novara), signed by their players.
McKenzie Adams was named MVP of the game thanks to a very consistent erformance. She also scored the last and crucial point in the 4th set.
The best blocker of Novara team was Ilaria Battistoni, who is actually the "shortest" player of the team.
Cristina Chirichella"We are happy and proud for our victory and for having won our pool: it is a huge result for our club and now we will focus on the next stages of the competition. We are close to Turkish people and to our colleagues for Vakifbank for the big tragedy they went through; I am thankful to all the people who attended the game and contributed with a donation".
Captain of Igor Gorgonzola Novara
The Men’s competition also delivered some spectacular moments, with Grupa Azoty KĘDZIERZYN-KOŹLE, BR Volleys and VfB FRIEDRICHSHAFEN securing a spot at the #CLVolleyM Quartrers.
Grupa Azoty KĘDZIERZYN-KOŹLE 2-3 Aluron CMC Warta ZAWIERCIE
Reigning #CLVolleyM champions Grupa Azoty KĘDZIERZYN-KOŹLE lost their away playoff match against Aluron CMC Warta ZAWIERCIE (2-3), but thanks to straight sets win in the home game, proceed ahead to the Quarters.
While delivering a slightly equal performance on attacking (62 to 59 winning spikes for Zaksa) and on the blocking (seven to six for Aluron), it was the stronger serve that contributed for the win of the team of Zawiercie (10 to five aces).
Dawid KONARSKI“We may regret the Pool Phase more than these two games because we could finish it at higher place and did not have to play against ZAKSA. Despite the fact that we had some chances to beat them, we could have fought against less demanding rival. There were two very close battles, but they were better by two points in almost all sets. We finish the very first season of our club at Play Off phase, so we cannot be very happy, but we will learn from this experience for the future.”
Captain of Aluron CMC Warta ZAWIERCIE
Aleksander Śliwka“As expected, it was a very difficult match because the rivals put on a strong serve and it paid off. We told ourselves that we have to play carefully in blocking and defending, and it worked in the third set, when we blocked well in the end and I managed to finish important actions.”
Captain of ZAKSA
VfB FRIEDRICHSHAFEN 3-2 Tours VB
After winning the game in TOURS 3-0, two sets were enough for VfB Friedrichshafen to make it to the quarterfinals. It’s the first time for FRIEDRICHSHAFEN since 2018 to be one of the best eight teams in Europe. The key moment of their performance on Wednesday evening lies in the German team showing mental strength, after losing the first two sets.
The first set was Aboubacar DRAME NETO against the rest of the world. The French opposite overpowered VfB FRIEDRICHSHAFEN with eight spikes, one kill block and one ace to secure the first set for his team (25-21).
The “HÄFLER” scored only 15 points in the second set, but starting with an ace from Michal Superlak, the home team gained more and more confidence to deliver the ultimate comeback. With some spectacular safes from libero Blair Bann, FRIEDRICHSHAFEN took set three and for four.
Michal Superlak“We believed in ourselves, even after losing two sets. We did an amazing job and I’m very happy to meet Jastrzebski Wegiel in the quarterfinals now and I really believe that we have a chance against them.”
MVP of the game
BR Volleys 3-2 Ziraat Bank Ankara
BR Volleys and Ziraat Bank Ankara also delivered a great show for the spectators attending the game at Max-Schmeling-Halle BERLIN. More than 5000 Volleyball fans enjoyed the show that lasted more than two hours. Despite the “cat and mouse game”, it was the home team that seized the win, delivering more good news for the German fans.
It was definitely the stronger performance on the serve that played a crucial role for BR Volleys' win as they finished with 12 aces to their names (to six), while on the other components the two teams performed rather equally - 59 to 56 winning spikes for the Germans, and 10 blocks each.
Anton Brehme was named MVP, contributing for the win with 17 pts (65% exc. in attack). Marek Sotola scored 22. For the guest team, Osmany Juantorena and Wouter Ter Maat hammered 18 each, while Martin Atanasov added 17.
Anton Brehme"I think we saw two teams on a similar level today, who always won the sets when they served well. In the fifth set, we had the crowd behind us and with the good start in the tiebreak, we believed in ourselves again. What makes this team strong is that everyone can rely on each other. In front of this crowd and with this team performance, it was just fun to play Volleyball. I'm proud of us."
MVP of the game