A. Carraro Imoco CONEGLIANO have also won their second match of the 2021 CEV Champions League Volley Women in straight sets. VB NANTES were unable to put a crack in the strong powerhouse that is CONEGLIANO. The score was 0-3 (19-25, 11-25, 16-25). On Thursday Imoco will face Fenerbahce Opet ISTANBUL.

The match represented a small inner struggle for CONEGLIANO's second opposite Lucille Gicquel, who played for VB NANTES in the past two seasons, showing off her talent also in the Champions League matches against CONEGLIANO at the beginning of 2020. In the first set, coach Daniele Santarelli put back on court the three "top players" he kept at rest yesterday against Calcit: middle blocker Robin de Kruijf, star opposite Paola Egonu and outside hitter Kimberly Hill, Champions League winner in 2017 with Vakifbank in the Palaverde.

With the star line-up present, CONEGLIANO had little to fear from the French. Only in the first set they were able to keep track. But when it mattered, CONEGLIANO and especially Paola Egonu, powered through. First set went to the Italian team by 25-19.

The second set was a walk-over, 25-11. Egonu hitting 8, De Kruijf and Adams scored 5 each. In the third Lucille Gicquel made her appearance against her former team, she added 3 points to her tally of 23 from yesterday.

• Paola Egonu was top scorer with 20 points. Among those points were 4 aces. She was named the MVP.
• The match was over in 64 minutes
• CONEGLIANO outblocked NANTES 10 to 2
• Carli Anne Snyder was top scorer for NANTES with 10 points

Lauren Schad of VB NANTES
"After the game of Conegliano I think as a team we were happy with the spirit of our team. They are an incredibly tough opponent, by far the hardest one we will face this year and despite them getting leads we still managed to enjoy playing with one another and keeping our heads up. Ultimately, we tried our strengths and they were more organized on their defense against us. They’re athletic and they played their game. It’s normal. Egonu had a phenomenal match. Also nice to mention, it was special to have the chance to play against our old teammate Lucille and see how shes evolved as a player. I’m really proud of her and everything she’s accomplished! So now, we work harder. We look to the next day. We know this isn’t a breaking point in our season but an opportunity to get better."

Kimberly Hill of A.Carraro Imoco CONEGLIANO
"We had to step up our game because Nantes is a very good team, very strong physically. But I'm proud of our performance, we remained organized and stable as we should have and it paid off. I don't know what we can expect from the game against Fenerbahce because they're one of the best teams, but we're ready to fight".