18/08/2018 20:00
Home hopes still alive as 2 Czech teams reach #EuroBeachVolleyU18 semis
2018 CEV U18 Beach Volleyball European Championship
Brno, Czech Republic, August 18, 2018. All is set for the final day of #EuroBeachVolleyU18 as all the semi-finalists are known for both boys and girls. Two Czech pairs Julie Honzovicova/Lucie Sulcova and Tadeas Trousil/Jan Vodicka have reached the final four, together with the tournament's favourites CEV Youth Continental Cup winners Swedes Jonatan Hellvig/David Åhman, Russia's U19 World champions Dmitrii Veretiuk/Denis Shekunov and Mariia Bocharova together with Elizaveta Ludkova. Leo Dillier/Tinko Schnegg of Switzerland are also settled in the semi-finals and will aim for the medals just as the Spanish girls Daniela Álvarez Mendoza/Sofía González Racero and Germans Svenja Müller/Lea Sophie Kunst.
Julie Honzovičová (pictured) and Lucie Šulcová from Czech Republic seemed to be in top form at #EuroBeachVolleyU18! Without losing any set, they defeated teams from Italy and Poland during Saturday and were on fire! "It is absolutely incredible!" Šulcová said. "We have never experienced anything like this before. We were so nervous, but we appreciate the support of the crowd!" The top seeded Czechs will play against Svenja Müller and Lea Sophie Kunst from Germany in the first semifinal of the day on Sunday.
From Russia, Mariia Bocharova and Elizaveta Ludkova struggled during their quarter-final, but won in the tie-breaker against Ukraine's Kateryna Dashevska/Sofiia Rylova 2-1 (18-21, 25-23, 15-6). With victory against Austria in Round two, that was their only lost set in the Championship so far. Daniela Mendoza Alvarez and Sofia Gonzalez Racero (ESP) will be their opponents in semis, after defeating Bulgaria, Greece and one of the tournament's favourites, Wies Bekhuis/Raisa Schoon from the Netherlands.
"I can't believe it," stated Jan Vodička soon after he scored the winner against the Norwegian pair in the quarterfinals. "I am playing indoor volleyball most of the time, started to play beach volleyball a few monts ago, found Tadeáš... I simply can't believe we are in the semifinals here at Brno!" Together with his partner Tadeáš Trousil they defeated Italy earlier and will face Leo Dillier and Tinko Schnegg from Switzerland in a duel for a place in the final. "This is the best moment in my life," Schnegg stated after beating another of the tournament's top teams from Germany. "The semi-finals will be much more difficult, all of the fans will support the home team, but we want to give a 120% performance to win the match!"
The last semi-final will be played between teams from Sweden and Russia. CEV Youth Continental Cup winners against the reigning U19 World Champions, Jonatan Hellvig and David Ahman against Dmitrii Veretiuk and Denis Shekunov, rising stars against players of the future. This might be the top match of the day, even if Hellvig and Ahman almost lost a set to the Estonian team Timo Ander Lõhmus/Märt Tammearu in the quarterfinals.
Sunday will be a gig day for all eight teams that have survived in the competition, with the pressure continuing to increase. All are prepared to emerge as the new European Champions in the U18 category, the winners will be announced around 18:00 tomorrow evening.
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