13/12/2017 09:45
Italian derby highlights second night of #CLVolleyW group stage
2018 CEV Volleyball Champions League - Women
Luxembourg, December 13, 2017. The group stage of the 2018 CEV Volleyball Champions League – Women continues on Wednesday with another four eagerly anticipated matches, including the ‘Match of the Week’ between last year’s silver medal winners Imoco Volley CONEGLIANO and their domestic rivals Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA. Maritza PLOVDIV will contest their first-ever match in the pool phase of Europe’s elite club competition when hosting 2014 gold medallists Dinamo KAZAN of Russia as another rookie, Poland’s Developres SkyRes RZESZOW vie for their first victory in the League Round when taking on ASPTT MULHOUSE VB of France. Romania’s CSM Volei Alba BLAJ will start their third straight participation in the CEV Volleyball Champions League with a home match versus Volero ZÜRICH.
CSM Volei Alba BLAJ (ROU) vs. Volero ZÜRICH (SUI)
• CSM Volei Alba BLAJ are ready to start a new adventure in the Champions League.
• This is their third straight participation in Europe’s elite club competition.
• They will open their journey in the pool stage playing the reigning Swiss national champions at Transilvania Sporting Centre in Sibiu.
Darko Zakoc, head coach of CSM Volei Alba BLAJ: “I have heard many people saying that we were lucky with the draw, but I think that we were lucky only because we avoided some of the strongest opponents. This season we have a group where each team can beat anyone. Even though they do not have a team as competitive as in the last few years, Volero are the hottest candidates to finish first in the pool, Developres SkyRes RZESZOW represent a country, Poland, where Volleyball is one of the most popular sports and ASPTT MULHOUSE VB are the reigning French national champions. We have to fight for each game, and with the help of the management of the club that has done a good job to strengthen the team, I hope that we will have an important word to say in this group.”
Adina Salaoru, team captain of CSM Volei Alba BLAJ: “Considering the big names that feature in this competition, I think we were lucky with the draw. I hope we will succeed more than we did in the previous season, but I think we should not underestimate any opponent.”
Developres SkyRes RZESZOW (POL) vs. ASPTT MULHOUSE VB (FRA)
• It is the first season for Developres SkyRes RZESZOW in the CEV Volleyball Champions League.
• Developres SkyRes made it through to the group stage after recording two 3-1 wins in their third-round fixtures with Slovenia’s Nova KBM Branik MARIBOR.
• Developres SkyRes have significantly strengthened their roster since last season, with the addition of outside hitter Hélène Rousseaux, opposite Iuliia Andrushka, libero Agata Sawicka, middle blockers Kamila Ganszczyk and Monika Ptak, setter Natalia Gajewska and outside hitter Jelena Blagojević, who is the captain of the team as well.
• RZESZOW won the bronze medal in the last edition of the Polish national league.
• Top scorers in the second and third rounds for Developres SkyRes were Blagojević and Rousseaux.
• ASPTT MULHOUSE VB claimed a historic title in the last edition of the French national league.
• ASPTT MULHOUSE VB currently sit in third place in their national league.
Katarzyna Zabinska, middle blocker of RZESZOW: “The closer we get to the match, the more we think about it. We are very happy and blessed that we are able to play in the CEV Champions League. The fact that we can fight at a high level like that, with the best teams from Europe, is a great opportunity in itself.”
Jelena Blagojević, team captain of Developres SkyRes: “The French league is maybe not the strongest one, but MULHOUSE has a very good team. For us this match will be strange for sure, because it is the first time we play the CEV Champions League. It will be a good opportunity to get a victory in the first match, but for sure MULHOUSE is a good team, with good individual players and, as I watched their finals last year, they play good Volleyball, so it will be a tough fight. Regardless, I am very positive, as I am sure that we are at such a level, where we play good Volleyball as well and we are able to start our journey in the group stage of the CEV Champions League in a good way. The match will be hard for sure, everyone will be very emotional, but we should celebrate this big moment for women’s Volleyball in Rzeszow.”
Imoco Volley CONEGLIANO (ITA) vs. Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA (ITA)
• The top two teams from the Italian national league will be playing an eagerly anticipated derby in Pool B – in what is the ‘Match of the Week’.
• Last Saturday CONEGLIANO and NOVARA locked horns in the national league as well with Imoco Volley coming from behind to claim a 3-2 away victory. Kimberly Hill top scored with 26 points as Samanta Fabris came in as a sub and contributed to the victory as well.
• After this away victory, Imoco Volley are leading the way in the national league (26 points), two clear of NOVARA.
• Imoco Volley will be missing Megan Easy – who is out for the rest of the season – and middle blocker Raphaela Folie, who is struggling with a foot injury.
• It is a special match for a number of players since the current setter of NOVARA, Katarzyna Skorupa, played for CONEGLIANO last year; former Imoco Volley’s players now wearing the shirt of NOVARA are Lauren Gibbemeyer, Letizia Camera and Anthi Vasilantonaki. Kimberly Hill, on the other hand, played for NOVARA three years ago and is now one of CONEGLIANO ‘Panthers’.
• Russian referee Andrey Zenovich will bid farewell to international Volleyball following this match.
Daniele Santarelli, head coach of Imoco Volley: “On Saturday we played a great game in Novara, coming from behind and fighting to the end. However, we know that NOVARA is a great team and they will come to Palaverde determined to get their revenge on Wednesday. We will have to play another big game, for sure better than we did on Saturday. Luckily in the Champions League we have no limits as to the number of foreign players on the court, so we are free to line up our best starting six, and we are ready to play another big game.”
Samanta Fabris, player of Imoco Volley: “We are a great group where each player gives her contribution when called up in the game. Last Saturday we showed our strength in Novara, but now we have to repeat ourselves also in the Champions League. We have to start the group stage as good as we can and we want to keep winning in the national league as well as on the international stage. It will not be easy, but with the help of our fans, I know that we can play another big game on Wednesday at home.”
Massimo Barbolini, head coach of Igor Gorgonzola NOVARA: “We have been working for our debut in the Champions League with a lot of enthusiasm and desire to start well, being aware that we will immediately face what is one of the two toughest matches in our group. We will face a team with whom we have already measured up twice in the Italian League and Italian Supercup this season. They are a team of the highest level, just like us, and with whom we have had many great battles already; we want to play just another one, head to head, even in the Champions League, knowing that we will have to give our best in every situation.”
Maritza PLOVDIV (BUL) vs. Dinamo KAZAN (RUS)
• This will be the first match of any Bulgarian team in the pool stage of the CEV Volleyball Champions League - Women.
• Maritza PLOVDIV qualified for the 4th Round in a dramatic fashion, winning away Golden Sets in both the 2nd and 3rd Rounds; as for Dinamo KAZAN, starting directly from the pool stage, this will be their first Champions League match for the season.
• Both teams are leaders in the current standings at the half-season point in their domestic leagues and both have qualified for the final four stages of their national cup competitions.
• Just two days before this match, Maritza became the first team in history to be crowned Athlete of the Year in Plovdiv.
• The match will be aired live on Diema Sport 2 HD and streamed live on LAOLA1.tv.
Ivan Petkov, head coach of Maritza PLOVDIV: “We are about to face one of the strongest teams in the world indeed, but I think we are prepared. We are not here just to participate. We will be looking for a satisfactory performance and we will be satisfied if we end up in one of the top two spots in the pool’s final standings, giving us a chance to advance in the competition.”
Alexander Perepelkin, assistant coach of Dinamo KAZAN: “If we win all matches in our Pool C campaign, it will mean it is successful. If we do not advance, it will mean it is unsuccessful. I do not want to discuss the specific opponents, because it would be unprofessional to discuss who is strong and who is weak and then to have to slap ourselves on the mouth. We have to play each game at our maximum level. Only then, on the way to the final, we will be a team ready to play and win at any time.”
How to follow the matches...
Watch them live: http://cev.laola1.tv/
Click here for a comprehensive TV schedule.
Live score, statistics, reports and photos: all available on www.cev.lu
Social Media: Follow via the official event hashtag (#CLVolleyW) with the most regular updates coming on our competition Twitter account @CEVolleyballCL
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