Luxembourg, May 23, 2018. The CEV Silver European League Final Four hosts prove to be a tough challenge to their opponents in Pool A, as Sweden took the leading position with two victories after two rounds of the competition. Estonia remain one point behind after defeating Switzerland in a tie-breaker. In Pool B Austria established a wider gap to their competitors, as they are the only team without any loss this far.
POOL A
Estonia vs. Switzerland 3-2 (21-25, 25-17, 24-26, 25-18, 15-12)
- The teams of Estonia and Switzerland locked horns on Wednesday in a match of Leg 2 of the Silver European League – Women. It was a very interesting match that came to an end with a victory for the Estonians – the play was marked by intense rallies with both sides fighting for each point. However, Estonia performed better in the crucial moments and grabbed the win.
- Both Estonia and Switzerland now have two wins and two losses when it comes to their head-to-heads.
- There was a record-breaking audience for a women's game, since around 1,200 people attended the match and enjoyed the play.
- Kertu Laak of Estonia scored only one point in the first set but managed to come back in an amazing way, ending the game with 27 points (including four aces and eight blocks). Laura Kuenzler scored as many as 35 points for Switzerland in their losing effort.
Liis Kullerkann, player of Estonia: “The start of the match was terrible for us but thanks to the great service series of Julija Mõnnakmäe and Kertu Laak, we managed to save the game. Our block was not working properly and we will work on that during the next training sessions. From an emotional point of view, it was a good and important win for us.”
Timothy Lippuner, coach of Switzerland: “As I expected our match turned out to be a five-set game. Both teams were testing each other at the beginning, we had a better first set, and on the contrary, Estonia had a better second one. In general, it was an equal match, but we started worse in the last set and that was the key for the eventual result. We made too many mistakes in difficult situations. Taking one point from this match is important for us as we can expect to improve when playing at home.”
Kosovo vs. Sweden 0-3 (21-25, 23-25, 10-25)
• Sweden claimed their second victory in as many matches in Pool A, thus cementing their leadership in the group.
• Kosovo put up a fight in the first two sets, where the hosts claimed 21 and 23 points, respectively.
• Isabelle Haak top scored for Sweden with an impressive haul of 21 points.
• Kosovo’s Florentina Deliu made her European League debut, taking to the court in the third set.
Guillermo Gallardo, coach of Sweden: “It was an extremely tough match for the first two sets, since Kosovo put a lot of pressure on us. It was very important to win and we have done that. We do not underestimate any team and we just keep going forward. We look forward to the next match with Estonia and we will give our best there as well.”
Jonna Wasserfaller, captain of Sweden: “We are happy for the victory and it was a good game for us. We think the leader of the group will be decided between Sweden and Estonia. We have played them before and they recorded more wins than we did. Therefore, it is time for a revenge.”
Lorik Ilazi, head coach of Kosovo: “I am happy because I see a lot of progress compared with the last game against Estonia. Our girls did a great job and I think we were unlucky when we led 23-22 in the second set, as we were hoping to win at least one set. Our focus is now on Saturday’s game against Switzerland, and it’s great that I will be back at Forum Biwi Rossemaison, where I played with KV Drita in the CEV Cup.”
POOL B
Albania vs. Austria 0-3 (18-25, 17-25, 21-25)
• Austria recorded a 3-0 victory at Olimpik Park in Tirana, thus claiming the leadership in the Pool since these teams had emerged victorious from their previous matches last Saturday.
• The local fans expected a much better performance from the home side but they left the sports hall very disappointed, as the hosts made too many mistakes.
• Austria, on the other hand, played very well and deserved their victory.
• Austria dominated the game from start to end, slowly but surely extending their advantage in each set. Only the third set was a little closer, but Albania failed to rise to the occasion.
• Nikolina Maros of Austria top scored with 16 points.
Altin Martiri, coach of Albania: “I think this is the worst game we have played in three years. We made many mistakes in this game, something unusual for us, not giving what we expected. We have to analyse this defeat and try to return to the path of victory as quickly as possible.”
Svetlana Ilic, coach of Austria: “We achieved a great victory tonight, against our main rival in the pool. We know that Albania is a strong team, but we also played well and I think we deserved the victory, which gives us more confidence for the future. We have to continue working well and hard for the next games.”
Israel vs. Georgia 3-1 (25-21, 23-25, 25-20, 25-16)
• Israel secured their first victory in this year’s Silver European League in Ra’anana.
• The hosts improved their win-loss record to 1-1, as Georgia are still winless.
• Polina Malik top scored for the home side with 22 points followed by Vitalia Marmen with 16. Svetlana Sosnovskaya registered 15 points for Georgia, with Ann Kalandadze adding 11 to their count.
Giuseppe Cuccarini, coach of Israel: “I am very happy with this victory, since it gives us a lot of energy and motivation to continue our campaign. Our young players gain international experience from such a competition and this is very important. We lost the second set because of our own mistakes. We will learn from that and improve. We have a very tough game with Albania coming up on Saturday and I am sure we will be prepared for that.”
Paata Ulumbelashvili, coach of Georgia: “We lost this match because of our own mistakes. We will learn from this for the remainder of the competition, since the Silver European League is a great opportunity for our team to progress.”
Click here for further information.