12/03/2015 17:05
ASSE-LENNIK edge past ANTWERP at golden set to play world-class opponent in CEV Cup semis
2015 CEV Volleyball Cup - Men
Antwerp, Belgium, March 12, 2015. Belgium’s Volley behappy2 ASSE-LENNIK qualified on Wednesday night for the semis of the 2015 CEV Volleyball Cup – Men to play there Russia’s giant Dinamo MOSCOW in the next-to-last stage of the competition. The Belgians did so after losing by 1:3 the return match of the Challenge Round with their compatriots Precura ANTWERP but an 18-16 win in the golden set that followed paved their way to the semis.
After losing last week the first match in three sets, Precura needed to come back strong and to record a 3:0 or 3:1 home win to keep alive their chances of making the next round. However, they were up to such difficult task and the players mentored by coach Geert Verreth opened their quest with a speedy 25-13 win in the first set. ASSE-LENNIK then fought back in the second set where good serving paved the way for the final 22-25. Precura ANTWERP could not avoid any more mistakes and had to win set 3 and 4 to get the chance to vie for a golden set. After trailing by 10:13, Precura stormed back in the third set bringing it home at 25-22 on a superb performance by Marien Moreau and Sebastiaan van Bemmelen. Precura had to come back also in the fourth set and after another 25-22 eventually got the chance to play the golden set. ASSE-LENNIK went up by 13:10 there but ANTWERP fought back and even had two match balls at 15:14 and 16:15. The hosts could not capitalise on these opportunities before Dutch opposite Robin Overbeeke and a block on Marien Moreau finished it off at 18-16 for the visitors to start the party for ASSE-LENNIK.
“We did not play that good tonight and we had problems with our middle blockers,” said the coach of Volley behappy2 ASSE-LENNIK, Johan Devoghel, after the match. “Luckily things went the right way for us at the golden set. It is a dream that comes true since every single Volleyball player and team would like to have the chance to play such world-class opponent as Dinamo MOSCOW.”
“We were so close to the achievement of our goal and it really hurts when you lose a match this way,” said the team captain and setter of Precura ANTWERP, Yannick van Harskamp. “It hurts more than the loss we suffered in the final of the Belgian national cup because there they simply were the better team.”
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