30/08/2013 19:00
Teams from five countries through to semis at U18 Champs in Molodechno
2013 CEV U18 Beach Volleyball European Championship
Molodechno, Belarus, August 30, 2013. On Friday the semifinalists of the 2013 CEV U18 Beach Volleyball European Championship were determined at the end of a long day packed with exciting matches. Germany eventually qualified two teams for the boys’ semis with Russia and Austria completing the grid; teams from four different countries – Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and the Netherlands – made the last stage of the girls’ tournament.
The afternoon session started with a very dramatic game starring Russia’s Ivan Novoselov/Maxim Sivolap and Austria’s Johannes Kratz/Lucas Skrabal. The two guys from Austria won the first set 37-35 thereby setting the record for the longest set in the tournament but after that their opponents from Russia were able to step up the quality of their performance and moved into the 1/4 finals sweeping set 2 and 3 (21-18, 15-11).
Germany’s Felix Göbert and Eric Stadie impressed the Belarusian audience as they did not concede any set to their opponents on their way to the semis. They first beat Poland’s Jakub Jetke/Mateusz Lysikowski 21-16, 21-11 and then routed Novoselov/Sivolap with a speedy 21-11, 21-17. In the semis they are set to play Austria’s Paul Buchegger/Moritz Pristauz-Telsnigg who in the 1/4 finals powered past Bulgaria’s Dimitar Kalchev/Stefan Ivanov with a double 21-16. “Though we lost this game, we are nevertheless happy that we could make the 1/4 finals” said the boys from Bulgaria.
Russia’s second-seeded Oleg Stoyanovskiy and Artem Yarzutkin are also still in contention for the medals. The winners of this year’s EEVZA U18 Championship edged Ukraine’s Oleg Plotnytskyi and Dmytro Kanaiev in straight sets (21-19, 21-15) to play another German duo in the semis, Niklas Rudolf and David Sossenheimer. Rudolf and Sossenheimer made the semis after showing great play and skills in their 1/4 final game with Poland’s Dominik Kmiecik and Jakub Macura (23-21, 21-15).
Ukraine’s Darya Udovenko and Alina Demydova are among the semifinalists of the women’s tournament. On Friday they first beat Estonia’s Laak/Pajula 21-12, 21-14 and in the next round they upset local heroines Valeryia Babenka and Viktoryia Shalayeuskaya (21-13, 21-15). Even though the home fans never stopped cheering for Vika and Valeriya, the guests from Ukraine did not lose composure and cruised to a well-deserved straight win. In the 1/4 finals Udovenko and Demydova – who last week had finished first at the Zonal Phase tournament for the CEV Youth Continental Cup held in Rhodes – claimed a very close game with Lithuania’s Urte Andriukaityte and Simona Vaiciukinayte (21-18, 20-22, and 15-12). In the semis they will play the winners of the EEVZA Championship held in Molodechno two weeks ago, Russia’s Nadezhda Makroguzova and Daria Rudykh. In the other semi, Germany’s Sarah Schneider and Leonie Welsch will play Dutch girls Joy Stubbe and Julia Wouters (pictured).
The semis and final matches scheduled for Saturday will all take place in the splendid stadium specifically set up for the Championship right in the heart of Molodechno.
Click here for more info
|