Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, January 10, 2020.  Poland vs. Turkey and Germany vs. the Netherlands are the two semifinal match-ups that emerged on the last competition day of the pool stage in Europe’s women’s Olympic qualification tournament. Turkey booked the last available spot in the semis by emerging with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Belgium in the direct clash for the second place in Pool B. Also on Friday, Poland and Germany cemented themselves as winners of Pools A and B with straight-set wins over Azerbaijan and Croatia, respectively. The race for the single available Tokyo 2020 ticket in Apeldoorn continues with the two semifinals on Saturday.



Pool B: Germany vs. Croatia 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-23)

Germany finished on top of Pool B undefeated after mastering a 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-23) victory over Croatia on Friday. In a one-sided first set, young Germans Hanna Orthman and Camilla Weitzel were quite efficient in exerting their power on the court and led their team to an emphatic 25-15 win. Croatia fought back in the beginning of the second set and managed to open a 7-2 lead. After 12-7, however, Germany scored five in a row to catch up and then took control for the rest of the set. Louisa Lippmann chipped in seven points in the set towards another emphatic win – 25-17. The two sets won were already enough to secure the top of the final standings for Germany, so coach Felix Koslowski changed almost the entire line-up for the third. Still, with 22-year-old substitute opposite Kimberly Drewniok firing nine points, the Germans had the initiative for the most part of the set, building up to a four-point lead at 19-15. Croatia did not give up and reacted with four consecutive points to level the score and prompt an exciting epilogue. After 23-23, Drewniok spiked to deliver the match point, which was then converted on an opponent error to a 25-23 close. Four players, Germany’s Orthmann, Drewniok and Weitzel and Croatia’s Sanja Gamma, shared the top scorer honours of the match with 10 points apiece.



Pool B: Turkey vs. Belgium 3-2 (25-20, 25-15, 20-25, 20-25, 15-10)

Turkey advanced to Saturday’s semifinals after a dramatic 3-2 (25-20, 25-15, 20-25, 20-25, 15-10) victory over Belgium in the direct clash for the second place in Pool B. Dominating at the net, in both hitting and blocking, Turkey prevailed throughout the first set. Their advantage was extended to as many as seven points. Britt Herbots helped Belgium get back to within three, but an unstoppable back-row spike by Hande Baladin finished the set at 25-20 Turkey’s way. Setter Cansu Ozbay continued to shine in creating opportunities for the Turkish offence in the second set and opposite Meryem Boz converted as many of those into points, including the back-row hit for the 25-15 winner. The third set was very competitive through 12-12, after which the Belgians managed to break away for good. Some strong serving, combined with efficient spiking by Celine Van Gestel, led to a 25-20 Belgian win, shaped up by Van Gestel herself with a successful spike. In a hard-fought fourth set, the lead changed hands several times. At 22-20, Turkey seemed very close to the match win, but Belgium took the next five points on some superb serving from Marlies Janssens and with Herbots hammering the last ball for 25-20. With setter Naz Aydemir Akyol in the starting line-up for the tie-breaker, Turkey won the first two rallies and never let go of their lead again. With Boz once again spearheading the offence, they cruised on to a 15-10 close. On an overhead pass from Naz, Boz put the ball on the floor for the victory. Boz top-scored a total of 26 points, including three aces. Herbots finished with 22 points for Belgium.



Pool A: Poland vs. Azerbaijan 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-23)

Poland delivered a 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-23) shutout of Azerbaijan to finish on top of Pool A unbeaten and set up a semifinal clash with Turkey on Saturday. The first set was a tight contest for the most part of the first half, with Azerbaijan setting the pace. After 14-14, stepping up their offence, the Poles broke away, opening a wide lead, and never looked back. Magdalena Stysiak prevailed at the net (seven points) to lead her team to a 25-19 win. After 8-7 in the second set, Poland scored six in a row with Marlena Kowalewska behind the serving line to open a 14-7 gap. Middle blocker Agnieszka Kakolewska ruled at the net with three stuffs and three spikes on the way to another 25-19 close. Improving their spiking effort with captain Yelyzaveta Samadova leading the way, Azerbaijan were in charge for a while in the middle part of the third set, but after 17-17 Poland gained control through the end. With most of the starters now resting on the bench, sub-in Martyna Lukasik scored seven times towards the 25-23 finish, while another sub-in, Monika Fedusio spiked the winning point. Samadova topped the scorers’ chart of the match on 14 points for Azerbaijan, while Lukasik contributed 12 towards Poland’s victory.




For further information, visit the official event website https://roadtotokyo.cev.eu.