The Worthy SuperFinals MVPs: Paola Egonu & David Smith
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Fantastic seasons for VakifBank’s Paola Egonu and Zaksa’s David Smith, the two players crowned on Saturday not just as part of the winning team, but also as the Most Valuable Players of their respective SuperFinal. The stellar performances were not a one-time occurrence, but rather a culmination of extremely productive season, so let us dive a little bit deeper.
Relive the CEV Champions League Volley SuperFinals - Turin 2023 on EuroVolley.TV
Against Eczacibasi Istanbul in the Final, Paola managed one of the best performances of her career, leading the pack with 40 points scored (2 Blocks/1 Ace). With that, she put a cap on her season with 275 total points in 13 matches played (6.4% set average), 71 points more than second place Vita Akimova/Ebrar Karakurt, and over 100 more than Eczacibasi’s super star, Tijana Boskovic.
Paola Egonu’s scoring prowess is not the only thing she brought to VakifBank in her first season with the team. Her 23 Kill Blocks put her in 6th for the entire season, while her 11 Aces put her 13th in the Server Rankings, only one away from a spot in the top ten.
David Smith has been one of the most important players for Zaksa throughout their incredible run of success in the CEV Champions League Volley in the last three seasons. The American Middle Blocker’s performance in the SuperFinals this past weekend cannot be fully described by just looking at the statistics. His 13 points (4 Kill Blocks/2 Aces) came at the perfect time for his team, almost choosing the hardest moments of the match to shine.
Throughout the season, David has managed an impressive 101 total points in 11 matches (2.3 set average), placing in the top 30. His 20 Kill Blocks for the season is in the top 5, where he is tied with Zaksa’s team captain, Aleksander Sliwka, while surprisingly for many, he is in the top 3 for most Aces this season (15), tied with none other than Dutch star, Nimir Abdel-Aziz.
Well deserved MVP awards to both players following stunning seasons and stellar performances in Turin and we will be looking forward to the return of the CEV Champions League Volley this fall to see them back on the court.