10/06/2016 20:30
Top-seeded Austrians boast immaculate record after Main Draw opening day in Baden
2016 CEV Beach Volleyball Satellite - Baden
Baden, Austria, June 10, 2016. Top-seeded and local favourites Alexander Huber/Robin Seidl boast a perfect record at the end of the first day of Main Draw action at the CEV Satellite in Baden. On the other hand, Lena Plesiutschnig suffered a shoulder injury in the women’s competition but the medical staff is hoping she can come back and perform on Saturday when vying for a spot in the semis.
Huber/Seidl easily claimed their first match of the day with Germany’s Yannick Harms and David Poniewaz (21-17, 21-13) but their second round game was a lot tougher and far more challenging. This applies especially to the first set of their matchup with Sean Faiga/Ariel Hilman of Israel before Huber/Seidl found their best rhythm to stamp another 2-0 victory (23-21, 21-16) and progress straight to Round 3. “It was a perfect start to the tournament. We are satisfied with our performance and we look forward to tomorrow’s quarter-finals,” Huber said.
Another Austrian team also made it to the second day of the Main Draw. Martin Ermacora and Moritz Pristauz-Telsnigg had surprisingly emerged victorious from Thursday’s qualification round. They started their Main Draw campaign losing a marathon match to Poland’s Maciej Kosiak/Maciej Rudol (26-24, 16-21, 21-23) but they fought their way back through the losers’ bracket. On Saturday they will play Faiga/Hilman to stay alive in the tournament after the Israelis beat third-seeded Austrians Thomas Kunert/Christoph Dressler (22-20, 21-15). Kunert/Dressler finish their campaign in ninth place – and the same applies to another Austrian team, Tobias Winter and Lorenz Petutschnig.
The highest-seeded Austrian team in the women’s competition, Lena Plesiutschnig and Katharina Schützenhöfer, had to deal with some bad luck. They first claimed their match with U20 European champions Nika Daalderop/Joy Stubbe of the Netherlands (21-12, 21-16) and were very much hoping to secure their promotion to the semis but Plesiutschnig injured her left shoulder and the Austrians forfeited their match with Jolien Sinnema and Rimke Braakman of the Netherlands. The medical staff will be trying to make sure that Plesiutschnig can perform on Saturday and the Austrians are hoping to fight back through the losers’ bracket.
There is another Austrian team still in contention for a spot in the semis. Bianca Zass and Valerie Teufl claimed an easy 21-14, 21-18 win in the derby with Cornelia Rimser/Katharina Almer and on Saturday will play Plesiutschnig/Schützenhöfer, which means at least one Austrian team will perform in the semis.
As for the remaining home team in the competition, sisters Nadine and Teresa Strauss lost two matches in a row in what was their first appearance at the event held in Baden – first to Kristyna Kolocova/Michala Kvapilova of the Czech Republic (14-21, 15-21) and after that to Daalderop/Stubbe (20-22, 15-21).
Switzerland’s Nina Betschart/Tanja Hüberli and Sinnema/Braakman of the Netherlands have already secured a spot among the top four of the competition.
Click here for further information including detailed results, a match programme and much more
|