Conegliano turn disappointment into Bronze in Istanbul
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There is a particular weight to a bronze medal match. It is played less than 24 hours after disappointment, with tired legs and heavier minds, and with only one certainty: one team will leave with something to hold onto, and the other with empty hands.
That reality shaped Sunday afternoon in Istanbul, where A. Carraro Prosecco DOC CONEGLIANO responded to semifinal heartbreak in the strongest possible way, defeating Savino Del Bene SCANDICCI in straight sets to claim the bronze medal at the 2026 CEV ZEREN Group Champions League Women’s Final Four.
The scoreboard read 3-0, but the match was far more than a clean finish. It was a test of mentality, and Conegliano passed it.
From the opening rally, Conegliano played with the urgency of a team determined not to let the weekend slip further away. Their aggression at the net, their composure in transition, and their collective belief set the tone immediately.
“Everyone was really believing,” said outside hitter Gabi Guimarães afterwards. “It’s not the colour of the medal that we wanted, but we didn’t deserve to leave the court today without the bronze medal.”
That conviction was visible throughout.
Isabelle Haak once again led by example, finishing with 19 points and moving ever closer to another Champions League milestone (she is now just two points short of recording 1,500 in the competition), while Zhu Ting added 18 points and four winning blocks in a display of calm authority. Gabi contributed 17 points and posted the highest reception efficiency of the match at 25 percent, underlining her all-around influence.
Against a Scandicci side that had pushed Eczacibasi to five sets less than a day earlier, Conegliano established control early and never truly surrendered it.
The opening set belonged entirely to them. Sharp serving and disciplined blocking disrupted Scandicci’s rhythm, while Haak and Zhu converted key attacks to build an early lead. The 25-16 scoreline reflected a set played with clarity and purpose.
Scandicci responded in the second, finding greater balance behind Ekaterina Antropova, who once again carried the offensive load with 22 points. The set tightened into a battle of margins, but Conegliano held steady in the decisive exchanges, edging it 26-24.
By then, the emotional swing of the match had become clear.
Scandicci fought to extend the contest in the third, but Conegliano, having learned from recent missed opportunities, stayed composed under pressure. They closed the set 27-25, sealing the bronze and ending their European campaign with a statement.
For a club whose hopes of a historic third consecutive Champions League title had ended in the semifinals, the response mattered.
“Bronze medal matches are always the toughest,” team captain Joanna Wolosz. “It was really difficult, even from the morning, to think about how we were supposed to play this game. But we told each other we deserved to finish this tough season in the best way, with one victory. And we did.”
That sense of pride echoed throughout the team.
Middle blocker Marina Lubian reflected on the emotional challenge of returning to court after defeat, noting that these matches demand a shift in mindset as much as performance.
“You go on court with the loss from the day before, so it’s never easy,” she said. “But sport is made of loss also. You can learn a lot from that. The good thing we did today was pushing through and focusing on what we could still gain.”
That gain was significant.
With the result, Conegliano secured their second Champions League bronze medal and avoided what would have been their first run of three consecutive defeats in the competition. For veterans Joanna Wolosz and Monica De Gennaro, it marked yet another addition to extraordinary European careers, each now holding eight Champions League medals.
For Scandicci, the afternoon brought another near miss on the continental stage. Despite Antropova’s tournament-leading campaign, now totalling 242 points, the highest single-season mark in club history, and another resilient performance, they leave Istanbul without a medal.
Yet their competitiveness remained evident until the final rally.
This was, after all, a meeting of two clubs who had contested last year’s final and one of the strongest rivalries in recent European volleyball. Conegliano had won four of their previous five Champions League encounters, but Scandicci’s victory in the 2025 Club World Championship final had added fresh tension to the matchup.
On Sunday, Conegliano reclaimed the edge.
Not the trophy they came for, but a finish that restored pride and perspective.
Because bronze medal matches are rarely about celebration.
They are about character.
And in Istanbul, Conegliano showed exactly that.
