Grupa Azoty Kedzierzyn-Kozle showed no mercy for Polish compatriots PGE Skra Belchatow and delivered an emphatic 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-19) shutout on opening night of their home tournament in Pool A of the Champions League.

Having maintained a lead throughout the first set and even extending it to 20-14, Grupa Azoty had to survive a late scare as PGE Skra managed to catch up momentarily at 21-21. Still, the home team reacted swiftly to snatch the next four points and the set with Lukasz Kaczmarek scoring the last two with an ace and an off-the-block spike.

No such scares came around in the second set. The last time Skra were ahead in the score was at 2-1. Grupa Azoty scored three in a row and never let go of the lead through the end of the set. With Kaczmarek riding the momentum, they cruised on to a 25-19 close.

In the third set, Skra’s blocking started bringing in some points, but that alone did not help them stay afloat for long. Well supported by teammates Aleksander Sliwka and setter Benjamin Toniutti, Kaczmarek kept the fire burning at the net. His team reached a multiple match point before the opponents attempted a comeback, but too little, too late. Kamil Semeniuk blasted the last hit of the match shaping up the 25-19 and 3-0 victory.

Lukasz Kaczmarek was the best scorer of the match on 17 points, followed by Aleksander Sliwka and Skra’s Milad Ebadipour on 15 each.