NOVARA, Zeren, and MILANO set sights on #CLVolleyW quarterfinals
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Numia Vero Volley MILANO, ANKARA Zeren Spor Kulübü, and Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA are all only two sets away from reaching the quarterfinals of the CEV ZEREN Group Champions League Volley 2026 – Women after their impressive wins in the first round of the Playoffs contested earlier this week.
Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA did somehow cause a sensation as they secured their first victory (3-1) this season over reigning Club World champions Savino Del Bene SCANDICCI. The players from Novara had previously lost twice by the same score (2-3) their fixtures with the side from Tuscany. NOVARA opposite hitter Tatiana Tolok was awarded MVP of the game after winning an emotional duel with Ekaterina Antropova: she scored 32 times with an impressive 55% success rate in attack. Mayu Ishikawa and Antropova were the best servers of the game: they both scored three aces.
Lorenzo Bernardi, head coach of Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA: “We came from a very bad performance in the national league and today we played great, against one of the strongest teams in the world. We know we have not achieved anything just yet: we have to stay focused, because we know that the crucial game is the next one, when we are going to face SCANDICCI in their home. For sure, we need to approach the game as if we were 0-0 and play with the goal of achieving another victory.”
Lina Alsmeier“I am so proud of the team, as in my opinion we performed just great with the block-defence and that was the key for our success. We have to keep pushing in this phase, as any game is crucial and for sure we have to approach the next match in Florence being aware that the path to the next round is still long and complicated.”
Player of Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA
Numia Vero Volley MILANO defeated Olympiacos 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-17) in Piraeus at the M. Merkouri indoor hall. The Red-and-Whites were competitive throughout the match, but the Italian side demonstrated its quality, taking the first step toward qualification for the quarterfinals. MVP of the match was the outstanding Paola Egonu with 17 points, converting 17 of her 31 attacks (55%). Vero Volley recorded 12 blocks and five aces. Olympiacos’ top scorer was Milica Kubura with 16 points.
Branko Kovacevic, head coach of Olympiacos: “With most of the game, we really can be satisfied, especially about the fighting spirit. We did not have really a chance to win a set, but we were competitive for most of the game. So congratulations for our girls. With this kind of teams, you need to be perfect. Some easy balls, some setting of high balls were not ideal, and MILANO, of course, punished us.”
Maria-Eleni Artakianou, libero of Olympiacos: “We knew from the beginning that it was going to be a very difficult match. MILANO is one of the best teams in the world, so we knew it would be extremely tough for us. But what we agreed among ourselves was that we wanted to enjoy the game. In the first two sets, we managed to do that and we were very competitive. In the third set, we were not as competitive. We have to keep going and look ahead. We still have another match against them in Italy, which will be even more difficult, because they play better on their home court. The only thing we have to do is to improve certain aspects of our game and go there to enjoy the match. All of us want to play in games like this. As I said, it is a huge achievement for all of us to compete against such big names. I believe that now that Monica De Gennaro has stopped, Eleonora Fersino can become the future icon of the Italian national team. I think this is a huge achievement, not only for Olympiacos but also for Greece, because it is very important for our country to move up in the ranking.”
Stefano Lavarini“We are happy about the result because we knew that it was not easy to come here. We had a couple of moments during the sets where we, let’s say, we lost a little bit the continuity, the focus, but at the end, most of the time, I think we played a good game. Of course, there have been moments where, in particular in service, they created big problems, but luckily we could handle this pretty well and I hope we will be starting from a good point for the next match.”
Head coach of Numia Vero Volley MILANO
Paola Egonu, opposite hitter of MILANO: “I am proud of my team. We were more consistent and kept working on our game. We tried a lot, and Olympiacos was really there and showed their quality. I cannot wait for the next game.”
Elsewhere, rookies ANKARA Zeren Spor Kulübü recorded a 3-1 away victory over German champions SSC Palmberg SCHWERIN (25-21, 25-21, 21-25, 25-14), with Anna Lazareva setting the pace for the team from the Turkish capital city with 25 points. This result raises their chances of reaching the quarterfinals in their first-ever #CLVolleyW appearance – while improving their record against German teams to 3-0, as earlier this season Zeren had beaten twice the second German representative in the competition, DRESDNER SC, in Pool D.