07/08/2015 23:37
Swiss favourites cruise into quarterfinals at Biel/Bienne Masters
2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship - Biel/Bienne Masters
Biel/Bienne, Switzerland, August 7, 2015. On Friday Highly-rated Swiss duos Joana Heidrich/Nadine Zumkehr and Isabelle Forrer/Anouk Vergé-Dépré flew the home flag high as they eased their way into the quarterfinals of the 2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship – Biel/Bienne Masters, after topping their respective pools with three consecutive victories.
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On a hot and hectic Friday in Biel/Bienne, the women’s Main Draw pools of the 2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship Biel/Bienne Masters reached their conclusion, but some teams had little respite as they were forced to fight for their quarterfinal berths in spectacular fashion as they got back in action in the evening.
Local heroines Heidrich/Zumkehr and Forrer/Vergé-Dépré had no such worries however. Both teams sailed into the quarterfinals with minimal fuss, topping pools B and C, respectively. Austrian starlets Stefanie Schwaiger/Barbara Hansel also got to see themselves safely into the last eight of the tournament with three wins in Pool C, and Victoria Bieneck/Julia Grossner of Germany snuck into the quarterfinals from Pool D with two wins.
With that decided, the stage was set for the eight sides finishing second and third in their respective pools to battle it out in the evening in make-or-break bouts on centre court where a raucous crowd waited to brew up a partisan atmosphere for the first round of the elimination phase.
There were two fantastic encounters for the fans to enjoy as the elimination round got up and running. Angela Lobato/Paula Soria of Spain were the beneficiaries of Katharina Schützenhöfer/Lena Pletsiutschnig’s (AUT) pulling out of their final pool game as the extra recuperation proved critical in their tie against Janne Kongshavn/Victoria Faye Kjølberg of Norway. They flew quickly out of the blocks to edge a tight first set and eventually ran to a 2:0 win (22-20, 21-13) to send the Norwegians home.
Germany’s Teresa Mersmann/Isabel Schneider and Spain’s Ester Ribera/Amaranta Fernandez Navarro served up a classic in what was arguably the game of the night. In a first set wrought with spectacular rallies, the blocking game and on-court improvisation reigned supreme as the Spanish duo edged in front winning 21-18. The Germans roared back spectacularly in the second, clinching it 21-19 to send the match into a third set. The German resilience that is so often renowned in sport eventually broke down the guile and guts of the Spaniards, as Mersmann and Schneider grounded out a 15-9 win to deservedly go through. Both teams walked off to thunderous applause from the bumper crowd at centre court.
On the other hand, the dream goes on for Anni Schumacher/Sandra Seyfferth of Germany and Lenka Hajeckova/Sona Novakova Dosoudilova of the Czech Republic who comfortably claimed their elimination ties with 2:0 victories over teams from Austria and Norway, thereby securing their safe passage to Saturday’s quarterfinals.
As the crowd departed and centre court fell silent, so ended another emotional day at the 2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship Biel/Bienne Masters. But with the quality displayed during the evening, there is a sense that the teams left in the competition are beginning to show off their true value. With Saturday’s quarterfinalists now decided, the fans can expect another day of tense, nail-biting action as the Beach Volleyball carnival continues on the shores of Lake Biel.
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