Sofia, Bulgaria, April 14, 2018. Day 2 of the 2018 CEV U17 Volleyball European Championship – Women was successful for the team of Russia who showed their real face today winning 3-1 over the strong team of Belarus. Although they lost the first set, the Russian players were able to get back on their feet and take three points from this matchup. Serbia also recorded their first win at the tournament after a 3-1 victory over Slovenia. Both sides played a high speed Volleyball, with spectacular and long rallies which made the fans in Sofia enjoy the great show. The matchup between Hungary and Bulgaria became the Derby of the Day in Pool I. The inspired players of Hungary searched for the win, giving their best, but Bulgaria eventually emerged victorious (3-2).
Russia vs. Belarus 3-1 (21-25, 25-16, 25-17, 25-13)
• Russia seemed to be a bit more nervous in the first set, not being able to take the best out of their chances. The players headed by Svetlana Safronova couldn’t find sharpness in their attacks, and thus, couldn’t make the defence of Belarus suffer.
• On the contrary, Russia showed great concentration in the first moments of the second set (9-1). Belarus couldn’t react properly and despite some attempts to resist, Russia’s players kept on increasing the point gap in their favour.
• From that point on, the Russians wouldn’t let any big surprises happen, taking control of the game and claiming the eventual win by 3-1.
• Elizaveta Kochurina became Best Player of the match, scoring 24 times.
Svetlana Safronova, head coach of Russia: “It was very difficult to find our game after the loss we suffered yesterday, but our girls showed the Russian strong character and this was the main reason for our victory.”
Dzmitry Kot, head coach of Belarus: “We started well in the first part of the match and the game was good for us. But in the next three sets we couldn’t show our best and attack well. On the other hand, the block of Russia was crucial and this helped them a lot establish their rhythm of play.”
Slovenia vs. Serbia 1-3 (28-26, 22-25, 20-25, 20-25)
• Slovenia and Serbia set the tone for an exciting match by playing some long rallies in the first set and a point-for-point game unfolded (24-24, 25-25, 26-26). Supporters of both teams were heating the atmosphere in sports hall “Hristo Botev”, but eventually the girls from Slovenia emerged victorious 28-26.
• The same scenario developed in the second part as both teams were performing at the same level, but in the decisive moments the Serbian players stood more concentrated and levelled the match by virtue of a 25-22 set win.
• It was in the third set when Serbia took the lead, but Slovenia wasn’t giving up easily. A very intense play marked all the match but eventually the Serbian girls proved to be better.
Boris Klokocovnik, head coach of Slovenia: “I think that it was a good game today, but of course we will search for improvement as losing is not our option. Serbia is a strong team with tall players, but we also were fighting for every point and I hope we will continue to do so.”
Jovo Cakovic, head coach of Serbia: “We won but we made a lot of errors on serving. In the first set we made 8 such errors and we lost that section of the game. We played better than yesterday, but I think that we have to play better every day and in all the matches that we are having here.”
Hungary vs. Bulgaria 2-3 (25-18, 20-25, 31-29, 23-25, 7-15)
• Before the match started, a minute's silence was observed in “Hristo Botev” sports hall to pay tribute to the victims of a tragic autobus crash, that happened on April 13 on a highway near Sofia and resulted in as many as six casualties.
• Hungary started the match free from any pressure, which allowed them to play their best. The players around head coach Gabor Konig disappointed the home crowds opening the match with a 25-18 win.
• Things got different in the next part with Bulgaria showing a better performance. Although the Hungarians weren’t giving up – they made it rather difficult for Bulgaria at 12-11, but the second set eventually went the way of the Bulgarian Lionesses.
• The third set got all the Volleyball fans on their feet – Hungary and Bulgaria were constantly exchanging the lead, but in the last decisive moments Bulgaria’s players made some unforced errors and Hungary showed better nerves by closing the set 31-29.
• A Volleyball thriller – this is what the fourth set could be called! Bulgaria managed to level the match and brought it into a tiebreaker.
• In the decisive set, Bulgaria claimed an early lead and won with a margin of eight points, thus putting an end to a truly dramatic fight.
Gabor Konig, head coach of Hungary: “We were happy today, we enjoyed the match. As I said yesterday, we came here to have fun. We had also some “luck problems” but this is sport. I think that we are also a winner, because we deserved more but this is sport. I am absolutely proud of my girls.”
Stojan Gunchev, head coach of Bulgaria: “The only good thing is that we won. It was a tough game and from a technical point of view I could say that we did not perform well. I don’t know if we underestimated our opponents, my players then got nervous, but luckily we won. Maybe the happiness from yesterday’s win over Russia had an impact on us, but not in a positive way.”
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