Baku, Azerbaijan, June 13, 2015. The historic Baku 2015 European Games lived its first moments of anticipated and spectacular action this Saturday with the opening matches of the competition in Pool B. As the ball flew over the outstanding venue of Crystal Hall, months and years of preparation and hopes and dreams were put into play in this thrilling and memorable event that takes the stage in the capital of Azerbaijan, with Serbia, Germany and The Netherlands clinching the first victories in the pool.
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Serbia vs Croatia 3:0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-17)
Serbia earned the honour of becoming the first winner in the history of the European Games after beating Croatia 3:0 in the opening match of the Volleyball competition. The team directed by Zoran Terzic presented its candidacy to lead the Preliminary Pool B with a convincing victory in the inaugural clash of the historic competition being celebrated in Baku.
The Serbian players intended from the very beginning to inscribe their names in the annals of the European Games as the first winners of the Volleyball tournament, and showcased their skills in a sensational start of the match. The excellence presented by Zoran Terzic’s girls in the first set paved the way for the victory of the Serbian squad, as its effective balance of attack and block took Croatia by surprise. Milena Rasic’s performance in the middle of the net and Marta Drpa’s spikes contributed to the convincing 25-15 that concluded the initial period of the match.
Croatia tried to put an end to Serbia’s preeminence by using Samanta Fabris’ spikes as main reference, but as the second set advanced towards its resolution, Jelena Nikolic’s offensive actions and Bojana Zivkovic’ impeccable direction contributed to the restoration of the Serbian lead in the game. The result of 25-17 in the second set put Zoran Terzic’s girls one step away from victory.
The splendid venue of Crystal Hall started to fill up with spectators who did not want to miss the sensational event of Volleyball in Baku, while the Croatian players contemplated how Serbia proved to strong for them to produce a reaction. The attempts by the players directed by Angelo Vercesi encountered an inspired Serbian side that maintained its level of efficiency in the third set. 25-17 and Serbia took the first victory in the history of the European Games.
“Even though we lost 0:3 we didn’t play bad. We have a new and young team with only two players from the previous season. We tried our best but we have to work our way through the tournament step by step,” declared the coach of Croatian team, Angelo Vercesi.
"It is important to start the competition with a victory and we did it. We played very well and we did not give Croatia any options to win. I am very satisfied by the way we played and by the performance of my players today,” stated the coach of the Serbian team, Zoran Terzic.
Germany vs Bulgaria 3:2 (25-22, 24-26, 10-25, 28-26, 15-10)
Germany and Bulgaria presented their candidacies to lead the Pool B after a disputed match that continued the spectacular action of the 2015 Baku European Games. The thrilling clash resulted in an extremely even encounter that went to Germany in a heart-stopping tie-break.
The two teams on court based their play on their powerful attacks, as the energetic offensive actions from the two sides of the net marked the course of the first two sets. Germany players Maren Brinker and Margareta Anna Kozuch’s effective contribution provided a hardworking lead for Germans in the match after the starting period (25-22), but Bulgaria did not show signs of frailty, and with Elitsa Vasileva heading the offensive actions, Dragan Nesic’s girls recovered the equality in the clash following the second set 1:1 (24-26).
The Bulgarian streak was so impressive that the 2012 CEV Volleyball European League silver medallists achieved a ten-point lead in the onset of the third period. The flow of points landing in the German side of the court proved relentless so much so, that Luciano Pedullà’s girls could only witness their rivals’ domination in the period (10-25).
The tie returned to the scoreboard in the fourth set, as both sides engaged in a spectacular exchange of thrilling offensive actions. With the equaliser persisting in the period, the differences disappeared even as the set entered its final stages. In the key moments, the German girls showed more resilience, managed to dramatically save three match-balls, thus forcing the tie-break 28-26.
Ultimately, the German block turned out to be the deciding factor in the final set. Bulgaria struggled to score against the outstanding demonstration of the German middle blockers, as the wall over the net imposed by Luciano Pedullà’s girls constituted the not-so secret weapon of the German squad in its thrilling quest for victory. 15-10 and Germany won the roller coaster match in the tie-break.
“We managed to achieve a very good reaction today, especially in the third set. It was difficult for us to come back like we did in the third period, but we could do it. I am very happy with the result because it is the first important victory I achieve with this group,” commented the coach of Germany, Luciano Pedullà.
“We have to congratulate both teams because it was a good match. It was not so pleasant for us because we could not close the match, as it could have been 3:1 for us, but I am happy because it is not easy to play a match like that. Mentality was very important today, it was the key,” declared the coach of Bulgaria, Dragan Nesic.
The Netherlands vs Russia 3:1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-22, 25-21)
The Netherlands upset Russia in the last match of the day in Pool B, a disputed encounter between two of the powerhouses of the tournament that clashed in search of a victorious debut in the competition. The honour of signing its first triumph in the inaugural European Games fell on the Dutch side, as the squad directed by Giovanni Guidetti achieved a creditable victory in a thrilling game.
The Netherlands surprised Russia in the outset of the match with a demonstration of collective efficiency. The Dutchwomen’s precise actions found the right complement in Lonneke Slöetjes’ foolproof offensive performance, so to convincingly submit its rivals in the first period 25-19.
Russia managed to mend its pieces after this first set and retrieved the lead of the game from its rivals by taking risks in serve and by using Irina Malkova’s and Daria Isaeva’s spikes. Despite the continuous Dutch attempts for a comeback, the Russian players were able to brush off their rivals’ final efforts of recovery in order to put the 1:1 in the scoreboard (21-25).
The clash between the two powerful squads intensified as both teams attempted to break the equaliser. In this situation of parity, The Netherlands used their excellence in defence and trademark team play to acquire a slight lead in the third period. Daria Isaeva catalysed her team's offensive actions over the net, but the potent spikes by the Russian opposite player could not put an end to the Dutch purposeful actions in this period 25-22.
Giovanni Guidetti’s girls used the momentum from the previous set to impose an intense pattern of play in the fourth period, thus attempting to avoid the tie-breaker and aiming at confirming their successful start of the competition. Russia was forced to come from behind and, despite its intention to present opposition, the Dutch side always maintained a difference in its favour throughout the period. A spike by Anne Buijs represented the 25-21 that closed the match 3:1 and gave The Netherlands a significant victory.
“It was a difficult match for us; our players were very nervous,” stated the coach of Russia, Vadim Pankov; “We didn’t start very good on the first set, and we improved on the second set, but the Dutch team is a good team and they played better than us,” he added.
“We did not play at our best level tonight, but we kept on fighting, and that resulted into our victory. This is a completely new tournament, and you need to get a feeling with the hall and everything. If the match is not going the way you want, then it will be how it is. But we believed that we could make it go our way. We still have a lot of things to work on before the next match,” said Maret Balkenstein-Grothues, Dutch captain.