Perugia blank Halkbank Ankara to secure second finals berth in history in the #CLVolleyM

Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia became the first finalist of this season’s CEV Champions League Men Final Four, after the Italian side secured a 3:0 (25:23; 25:23; 25:22) win over Halkbank Ankara in the first semi-final of the business end of the competition.

This is the second finals berth secured by the Italian side in their history, after the one in the 2016/17 season, stopping a streak of five semi-finals lost by Perugia, with a consistent performance, albeit one which put them to the test.

The match started with a better display by Halkbank, as the Turkish side claimed an early lead, 5:1, surprising Perugia with their efficient play, especially as Yoandy Leal, who signed for Ankara in January proved to be unstoppable.

Leal finished the first set with eight points, but Perugia got the best of Halkbank, thanks to a fantastic 56% attacking efficiency in the first set, cutting into the Turkish side’s lead midway in the set, as they claimed their first lead, 14:13.

Halkbank bounced back, but it was not enough, despite leading 21:20, as Perugia took five of the last seven points of the set, as Japanese star Yuki Ishikawa proved to be flawless, scoring even points, including one ace.

The second set was controlled by Perugia, which had a better start (8:6) and maintained their lead until the end, with Ishikawa adding seven more points, to take his total to 14 points after two sets.

Perugia were firmly in the lead towards the end of the set, 22:18, but a comeback from Halkbank made it a one-point set, only for Halkbank’s top scorer this seasn, Marek Sotola, to serve out of bounds and gift the Italian side the set, 25:23.

Therefore, two sets down, Halkbank had nothing to lose and needed to up their game to provide a challenge for Perugia and turn the match on its head, just like they did on Italian soil, when these two sides met for the second time this season and Halkbank pulled off an upset, 3:2.

Yet this was not the case this time, despite Halkbank taking a 4:0 lead in the third set, with yet another blazing start. However, mistakes kept creeping in for Halkbank, with their attack once again failing to provide the goods.

With a 8:4 run, Perugia tied the score, 8:8, as Ishikawa was seconded by Wassim Ben Tara, as the two stars produced the highest number of points in the match, 20 and 14 respectively.

But as Perugia established a four-point lead, 15:11, it was looking increasingly unlikely that Halkbank will mount a comeback and despite the Turkish side doing their best, they conceded the third set and the match, 22:25.

The Italian side, which conceded a single loss on their way to the final, are now back in the last act of the European premium competition for the second time in history, and will wait for tomorrow’s second semi-final between Jastrzębski Węgiel and Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie.

On the other hand, Halkbank Ankara lost the chance for their second final in history and will try to finish the Final Four in Łódź on a high in the bronze medal match.