Three times reigning champion ZAKSA out of the #CLVolleyM after a defeat by Halkbank ANKARA
Recap
The second Play-off match of the #CLVolleyM between Halkbank ANKARA and Grupa Azoty KĘDZIERZYN-KOŹLE took place on a Wednesday and what a surprise was made by a Turkish team!
In a thrilling match, Halkbank won by 3-0 (32-30, 25-21, 25-22). In the first match, ZAKSA took a 2-3 win over the Turkish team but now they've lost every chance to go through the Quarter-finals, and Halkbank booked one of the eight tickets to the next phase of the Champions League!
This is a huge surprise for the whole volleyball community since ZAKSA won the Champions League in each of the past three seasons!
ZAKSA started the whole match very well and they already had a 1-9 lead in the first set, they were completely in the match and it did not seem like they were going to drop their advantage. In the middle of the set, it all changed and Halkbank went from 11-17 to 15-17 and that comeback was a breaking point for ZAKSA. They tried to give their all, so the first set only ended after a strong fight by both teams and the 32-30 on the scoreboard.
Halkbank started the second set with much self-esteem and a huge help from their home crowd. In the middle of the set, the Turkish team already had an eight points of advantage (15-7) and closed the set by 25-21.
A better play from ZAKSA was delivered in the third set, but Halkbank managed to keep their advantage throughout the whole set and take the match by 25-22. And by that, they’ve secured their place in the Quarter-finals, after they were eliminated in the semifinals in the last season of #CLVolleyM.
The MVP of the match was Nimir Abdel-Aziz with 25 winning spikes, 58 % of spike, and three aces. Halkbank Ankara will play their Quarter-final against Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA.