Luxembourg, February 23, 2021. The action in the semi-finals of the women’s CEV Volleyball Cup 2021 started on Tuesday at Halle du Four a Chaux in Beziers, France with a thrilling five-setter between BEZIERS Angels and Galatasaray HDI ISTANBUL. The hosts were down 1-2 to eventually win a nail-biting tie-break and secure an important victory on home soil. Angels' middle blocker Kazmiere Brown impressed with her performance being named the MVP of the game.
BEZIERS Angels (FRA) vs Galatasaray HDI ISTANBUL (TUR) 3-2 (25-20; 13-25; 18-25; 25-22; 15-13)
The hosts Beziers Angels opened the game taking a 7-2 lead and improving it to 11-5 as Galatasaray couldn't find their rhythm. Then, Olesia Rykhliuk and Tatiana Kosheleva sent several massive spikes to the other side of the net and thus the Turkish team reduced the gap to three points. Coach Fabien Simondet responded calling time-out, team efforts and impressive plays from Kazmiere Brown in the middle let the Angels regain control and eventually win the opener. The second set looked totally different, already from its beginning, Galatasaray earned a significant early lead (9-2), enhancing their game in all elements. With perfect reception (80%) and solid block they were easily extending their advantage to close the set easily at 25-13, while their opponent were totally lost committing as many as nine own errors.
With 1-1 on the scoreboard, the third part was a way more competitive. The Angels got back in the game. The hosts tried to jump ahead, but the Turkish team constantly kept their pace. The teams were delivering long rallies fighting hard for every point. The breakpoint came at 14-14 with Galatasaray star Tatiana Kosheleva on serving line, as the guests jumped to 17-14. Despite all the efforts of the hosts, Galatasaray sealed the set win. Having no more margin of error, Beziers Angels returned to the court fully motivated. The game was played on a point-by-point basis, however it was mostly the hosts being one or two points ahead. This trend continued through the set, but reaching a three-point-advantage at 21-19, Beziers were fully focused not to snatch such a chance. After a tight battle, it was Kazmiere Brown's spike that brought the match to tie-break.
The decisive set couldn't start differently - both teams were fighting hard and passionately trying to show their very best. Spectacular saves and powerful spikes resulted in point-by-point race. The Angels switched sides with a two-point-advantage, but the score was levelled already at 9-9, but only for a short while, as after time-out the Angels got wind under their wings. The team from Istanbul managed to save one match point, but the hosts didn't waste the second chance to seal their victory.
Middle blocker Kazmiere Brown was named the MVP after scoring as many as 17 points, including 3 blocks and having 67% of success in attack. Olesia Rykhliuk (Galatasaray) topped the scorers' chart with 32 points, while Malina Terrell contributed with 20 points to Beziers' victory. Worth to emphasize a great play of Angels' setter Raskie August, who herself scored 9 points (including 5 attacks, 2 blocks and 2 aces).
The decisive re-match is scheduled on March 3rd at Burhan Felek Voleybol Salonu in Istanbul. In the second semi-final Saugella MONZA will face Tent OBRENOVAC on Wednesday at 18:00 (CET).