BUSTO ARSIZIO last to join the quarterfinals, RZESZÓW wrap up the journey with a win

As the last day of the 4th Round continued, it was down to ŁKS Commercecon ŁÓDŹ, Unet e-work BUSTO ARSIZIO and SSC Palmberg Schwerin to secure the last spot in the Quarterfinals, with the two latter fighting in the direct clash in Pool A. Only the winner had a chance to continue playing in the Champions League, depending on the results of Łódź team in Pool C. But it was the Italians’ side that managed to secure a win in straight sets, jumping up to a second position in Pool A table, so desperately needed to keep the chances for a quarterfinal open. Their effort paid off as their victory was a strong enough result to give them the last ticket to the next phase of the competition. Developres SkyRes RZESZÓW end the Champions League journey with their first victory in Pool A. After a challenging 4th Round, where Rzeszów were unable to secure a win and gained only two points after two tie-break matches played against SSC Palmberg Schwerin and Unet e-work BUSTO ARSIZIO, the Polish team faced Savino Del Bene SCANDICCI on the last day of the competition. Rzeszów beat Scandicci, who have qualified to the quarterfinal earlier this week, in four sets and ended the round with five points. Scandicci qualified to the quarterfinal earlier this week, finishing the pool with 12 points.

Unet e-work BUSTO ARSIZIO went ahead of SSC Palmberg Schwerin early on the opening set, with the help of Alexa Lea Gray and her performance at the service line. The five-point gap, that began at 8-3 was confidently kept throughout the set and extended as far as 17-9. Although Schwerin attempted to close the gap, the Italian side won the first set at 25-20. The lead came even sooner in the second set, as Italians opened it with a 4-0 on the scoreboard. The advantage was growing rapidly to Busto Arsizio’s advantage as they reached 16-8, making it harder for the hosting team to chase the score. There was no surprise, when Italian club sealed the deal at 25-13 with a spike from Jovana Stevanovic. After two sets Alexa Lea Gray caught up with Greta Szakmary as they both had 13 points each as top scorer of the match thus far. Busto Arsizio were determined to control the match and keep their focus in the third set. As the match progressed, Schwerin’s coach Felix Koslowski called a time out when Alessia Gennari made it 16-5 for the Italians. The German side was none the wiser to make what would be a rather spectacular come-back by that point, as Busto Arsizio marched towards their quaerterfinal spot, winning the last set 25-12.

• In order to reach the next phase either team had to win with a better set result than ŁKS Commercecon ŁÓDŹ from Pool C, who were also in contention to reach the quarterfinals

• Alexa Gray who led the scoreboard throughout the match, kept her great performance, finishing with 17 points (15 winning spikes, 1 block and 1 ace)

• Greta Szakmary was the next best scorer with 14 points (all winning spikes) for Schwerin team 

• Busto Arsizio scored 9 points in block, while Schwerin haven’t recorded any points in that element

• Rossella Olivotto was the best blocker in the match with 4 points scored in that element

Perhaps it was the lack of pressure over the result of this match that allowed both teams to play more freely, as they opened the match with the longest set of the 4th Round. The record that belonged to Stuttgart and Istanbul, when they played their opening set on Tuesday until 32-30, was broken by Rzeszów and Scandicci, who fought until the Italian side one 33-35. This is only the second time in this Round for any team to go beyond 30-point mark. And yet it seemed unlikely from the first actions of the set as Rzeszów developed a four-point gap, which they maintained throughout the set and as far as 21-17. Scandicci found their way back, levelling at 22-22 and the real fight began as the Italian side defended eight set-points attempted by Rzeszów. It took three set points of their own for Scandicci to win the set 33-35.
Both clubs continued to keep the score tight during the second set, until Rzeszów achieved a 20-16 advantage yet again. Led by Kiera Van Ryk, Rzeszów were keen to not repeat their mistakes from the previous set and the team remained ahead until they won the set 25-22, with Van Ryk becoming the top scorer thus far with 17 points. Coach Barbolini brought a new line up in the third set onwards, giving Elena Pietrini, Agnese Cecconello, Kimberly Drewniok, Lucisa Bossetti and Letizia Camera a chance to play. Rzeszów continued the domination on court, going ahead as early as 12-8 and maintaining the gap throughout the set until they won 25-22. But it was not possible for the Polish club to keep tabs on point advantage forever, even when they’ve reached 19-13 in the fourth set, slowly marching towards a victory in the match. Scandicci proved, just like they did in the first set, that they are capable of patiently chasing their opponent and they were soon on level terms with Rzeszów at 22-22. The Polish team held under the pressure of the tight end of this set and secured a victory with a fourth match-ball, at 28-26.

• Kiera Van Ryk was named MVP of the match after scoring 36 points, including 31 winning spikes, 4 blocks and 1 ace

• The next best scorer gained 20 fewer points! Zuzanna Efimienko-Mlotkowska scored 15, including 6 blocks - that made her the best blocker in the match

• On the other side of the next Mina Popovic was the best server with 3 aces scored for Scandicci