Jastrzębski Węgiel become first team to qualify for #CLVolleyM quarter-finals
Report
The 4th leg of the CEV Champions League Volley 2022 – Men already determined the first quarter-finalist of this edition of Europe prime competition. The Polish reigning champion Jastrzębski Węgiel who earned their fourth victory without dropping a single set on their way in Pool A, became the first team to qualify to the next phase - a margin between Jastrzębski and ranked 2nd VfB Friedrichshafen is wide enough to already guarantee Jastrzębski 1st place in the standings. On Tuesday night, after a tight battle they beat in straight sets Knack Roeselare. This feat is even more notable as coach Andrea Gardini couldn’t count on Jurij Gladyr, Łukasz Wiśniewski and Arpad Baroti who due to health problems were not able to play in this encounter, thus the French Olympic champion Trevor Clevenot played as middle blocker. However, Jastrzębski Węgiel led by their charismatic captain Benjamin Toniutti – MVP of this game - completed their mission successfully and extended their winning streak to secure a pool win and grab a first minute ticket to quarter-finals.
JASTRZĘBSKI Węgiel - Knack ROESELARE 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-23)
Having a lot at stake and many forced changes in their line-up, Jastrzębski Węgiel struggled to find their rhythm at the beginning of the match in front of their home crowd at Hala Widowiskowo- Sportowa in Jastrzębie Zdrój. In addition, both teams were not able to avoid mistakes on service line (7 by Roeselare, 4 by Jastrzebski), but made it up with solid performances on attack. Thus, the game started with point-by-point race that was continued until 18-18, then after Clevenot's spike Jastrzebski jumped to two-point-lead which they improved further to close the first set with ace produced by 'new' French middle blocker.
Winning the opening set put the wind in Jastrzebski's sails. The hosts played confidently and earned a five-point-lead at 14-9, but Knack Roeselare didn't give up. They caught Jastrzebski napping and quickly erased the difference to take a lead at 20-18. It was a cold shower for the hosts, who regained control of the situation on the court with Hadrava's on serve. Szymura's spike sealed the set win.
With no more room for mistake, Roeselare spared no efforts to stay in the game. Mathijs Desmet played almost flawless, scoring six points (75% of success in attack in the third set). Therefore, this part turned into a very fierce battle. Neither team was able to gain a bigger advantage, as both played focused. The key point of this set - and the game - came after Hadrava's spike that gave Jastrzebski 23-22 lead. Eemi Tervaportti came in to serve and completed his task successfully, putting the opponent in trouble. Although, the away side denied one match point, they didn't manage to stop Fornal's kill that closed the game. In consequence, Jastrzębski Węgiel became the first team in this edition to book a spot in quarter-finals.
Benjamin Toniutti"We knew that we can qualify today if we win for three points. It is a great job to be already in the quarter-finals after four games. It was a goal of the team and the club to go to the quarters at least. It's not over yet, we have to continue and win these two last games in the group. Now, we are going to take a rest and we should be ready for the next fights."
captain ad setter of Jastrzębski Węgiel (MVP)
Matthijs Verhanneman"We started the match believing that we would have some chances. Of course there were missing some players of Jastrzebski Wegiel. We also missed one player, so we expected a little bit more chances that we had in the match at home. At the end it's again 3:0. Maybe we deserved one set, but in the important moments Jastrzebski Wegiel showed the quality and they were too strong for us."
outside spiker of Knack Roeselare
Also on Tuesday, Vojvodina NS Seme Novi Sad disappointed Zenit St. Petersburg, claiming first win in Pool D and Ziraat Bankasi Ankara defeated Projekt Warszawa in Pool B. The 4th leg will be continued on Wednesday.
