06/06/2014 18:13
Tanja & Tanja, Bieneck and Grossner claim semifinal spots
2014 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship - Final
Cagliari, Italy, June 6, 2014. The first quarterfinal matches of the women’s competition at the 2014 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship – Final in Cagliari ended up in a couple of sensations as Germany’s Victoria Bieneck/Julia Grossner and Switzerland’s Tanja Goricanec/Tanja Hüberli moved on to the semis after edging two duos that everyone had reckoned with for a spot on the podium on Saturday. Bieneck and Grossner beat Spain’s Liliana/Baquerizo in two sets (24-22, 21-18) and after that the audience on the stands of the centre court witnessed another surprise as the two Tanjas, Goricanec and Hüberli, stormed back from one set down to pull out a terrific 2:1 victory over the winners of this year’s Prague Open, Marketa Slukova and Kristyna Kolocova (18-21, 21-15, 15-10). Goricanec and Hüberli on Saturday will try to claim Switzerland’s first medal at the European Championship since the 2009 edition in Sochi where Simone Kuhn and Nadine Zumkehr won bronze.
Click here for more info including detailed results, a match programme and much more
Click here for a live gallery of the Championship
The women’s 1/4 finals got started with a surprise as Germany’s Victoria Bieneck and Julia Grossner confirmed their status as rising power on the European Beach Volleyball scene with a straight victory over last year’s silver medallists Liliana Fernandez Steiner and Elsa Baquerizo of Spain (24-22, 21-18). The Spaniards wanted to complete their collection of medals from the European Championship after winning bronze two years ago in The Hague and silver in Klagenfurt last August, but their opponents confirmed they are in fine form after winning last week’s Anapa Open in Russia. Bieneck and Grossner set the pace all the way through the opening set before the Spaniards levelled the score at 13 all. Both teams were able to complete their side-outs but in the end the Germans showed nerves of steel to seal the final 24-22. The story repeated itself also in the second set where Bieneck and Grossner opened with a 7:3 run but once more Liliana and Elsa got back on track to draw level at 16. This, however, was the very last time they could stand a chance to call for a tie-break as their opponents pulled out another series of three consecutive points (19:16) and then held on to it to pocket their ticket to the semis (21-18). “It was very windy today but we were able to cope with these difficult conditions,” Victoria Bieneck said. “We served really well and our performance was strong. We always play very good with them, we did so also last year in Argentina. We are pretty close friends off the court but this does not count anymore once you square off on the court. We now hope to keep on winning and are very motivated for the semis.”
The surprises continued to flock on Poetto beach as Switzerland’s Tanja Goricanec and Tanja Hüberli upset another one of Europe’s top teams, Marketa Slukova and Kristyna Kolocova of the Czech Republic. The match started very well for the Czechs who imposed their rhythm in the first set (21-18) and continued to dictate the tempo of the game also in the second (6:4). The course of the game changed quite dramatically as the Swiss scored five consecutive points to flip the charts around and move up 9:6; their Czech opponents felt the pressure and looked nervous, started making mistakes in almost every aspect of the game and trailed by as many as four points before the Swiss cashed the second set with ease (21-16). Goricanec and Hüberli were off to a very strong start also in the tie-break (5:1) and even though Slukova and Kolocova were able to storm back and cut their gap to only one point, the Swiss duo looked strong and broke away once more to cash an unexpected spot in the semis of the European Championship. On Saturday they will try to at least emulate their countrywomen Simone Kuhn and Nadine Zumkehr, the last Swiss duo to medal at the European Championship when they won bronze in Sochi in 2009. “We did not really expect to be in the semis,” Goricanec said. “I am particularly happy with the fact that earlier this morning, in our previous match with the Russian team, we kept calm also after losing the first set. We did the same this afternoon with the Czechs, kept focused and seized the chance once our opponents got nervous and started making mistakes. I am delighted with the opportunity of playing in the semis and now we hope to continue the same way; we will play rally after rally, match after match, being ready to seize our chance again and again.”
|