Baku, Azerbaijan, June 23, 2015. The historic inaugural European Games is ready to meet the four teams that will clash for the medals in the women’s competition. The sensational quest for glory of quarterfinals of the tournament being played on Tuesday started with an outstanding five-setter clash that ended with the victory of Poland over Germany 3:2 (25-23, 25-17, 18-25, 14-25, 15-10). A close match starring Turkey and Russia – two countries both boasting strong bonds with Azerbaijan, though for different reasons – ended in a 3:1 victory (25-18, 23-25, 25-22, 25-19) for the side captained by outside spiker Güldeniz Önal Pasaoglu whose performance was once again effectively orchestrated by star setter Naz Aydemir Akyol. The Turks will now face hosts Azerbaijan in the semifinals, after the local heroines beat The Netherlands in a thrilling showdown 3:0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-14). Finally, Serbia also qualified for the semis after battling Belgium in a tough, tight, and thrilling tiebreaker (25-22, 19-25, 25-14, 21-25, 19-17).
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Poland vs Germany 3:2 (25-23, 25-17, 18-25, 14-25, 15-10)
Poland are the first semifinalists of the women’s competition at the Baku 2015 European Games. The Polish squad beat Germany in a spectacular and disputed match that was resolved after a stunning display of collective efficiency and offensive power by the Polish side.
Two of the powerhouses of the competition demonstrated their intentions to fight for the ticket to the semifinals with a thrilling start of the match, presenting a vibrant exchange of points commanded by Anna Werblinska and Maren Brinker as main references of their respective teams. Poland managed to put an initial direct route to victory with two convincing sets dominated by their efficiency in attack (25-23, 25-17).
However, with 2:0 in the scoreboard, Germany staged a surprising recovery as Maren Brinker took the reins of her team. The attacks by the 1.84-metres tall outside spiker and the determination showed by Luciano Pedullà’s women enabled Germany to acquire an opportunity to fight for the match in the tie-break, after winning the third and fourth sets in a remarkable demonstration of team spirit (18-25, 14-25).
Much to the delight of the fans that crowded the Crystal Hall arena, the final period was electric, with tension and spectacular actions on both sides of the net. Poland acquired a slight advantage through their ample offensive skills (6:3, 8:5) and their efficiency in attack paved their way to victory. Germany struggled to keep up with their rivals’ pace and found great problems to control the powerful actions coming from the other side of the net. After a match ball saved by the German ladies, Poland sealed the set 15-10 and secured the coveted qualification to the semifinals.
“It was a very tough game. We knew that Germany was a very strong team, and that they had two powerful spikers, Margareta Anna Kozuch and Maren Brinker, so for us it was very important to stop them. We are very happy with the result and with the way we played because even though we had problems in the third and fourth sets, we worked hard and we are pleased that we could win. Our block and defence were the key factors leading to our victory, as we could stop Germany’s main attackers,” said the coach of Poland Jacek Nawrocki.
“It was a strange game because we were alive and close in the first set. It is only in the second set when we did not have a chance and Poland made it very difficult for us. In the tiebreak, Poland scored one or two points on some excellent serves, and we did not serve as good as they did; that made the difference today. Our goal was to reach the quarterfinals. But when you are here, of course you want to go to the semifinals – and we were close. Both teams played very well and there was a minimum difference between us,” said the coach of Germany Luciano Pedullà.
Turkey vs Russia 3:1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-22, 25-19)
After Poland had secured the first spot in the semis, Turkey and Russia were the next ones to play at Crystal Hall on Tuesday afternoon. Turkey enjoyed the evident support of the local audience – Azerbaijan and Turkey see each other as kind of ‘brother nations’ and so this did not come as a surprise – and was also the clear-cut favourite in this match since they had brought to Baku a good share of their best players, including star setter Naz Aydemir Akyol and outside spiker Neriman Ozsoy. Turkey set the pace of the match right from its outset and they piled up a comfortable lead already at the first technical time-out (8:3) which was then stretched to as many as eight points at the second one (16:8). However, Russia were not going to surrender that easily and after the break responded by scoring four straight points to prompt a time-out by Turkey’s mentor Ferhat Akbas. Though Russia played with more and more consistency, Turkey could still capitalise on their early lead and brought the opening set to an end with their young, yet talented middle blocker Kübra Akman (25-18).
Turkey came out with all guns blazing also in the second set (4:1, 8:5) but shortly after the second technical break Russia had narrowed their gap down to only two points (17:15). The equality on the scoreboard was restored just by the time the set was approaching its final stages (21 all); Russia’s spikers found more and more often a way to pass through the Turkish block but the ladies in red shirts were also determined to not let control of the match slip away from their hands. Irina Zaryazhko’s fast spike provided Russia with their first set ball at 24:23, and Vadim Pankov’s team finished it off only a few seconds later to make it 1:1.
The third set started in the same way with Turkey edging ahead right from the go (5:1, 8:4) but Russia fought their way back again ultimately levelling the score at 13 all before taking the lead for the first time at 14:13 blocking a back-row attack by Neriman Ozsoy. Three straight points by Turkey got the ‘Sultans of the Net’ back on track (16:14) before Russia rushed to the front again; the final stages of set 3 were truly dramatic and thrilling, Turkey won a challenge at 23:22 to get two set points and the cheers from the stands got louder than ever as Anastasia Chernaya spiked into the net to spark a 2:1 lead for Turkey in the match.
The course of the match did not change in set 4 with Daria Isaeva – formerly known as Stolyarova – continuing to play the role as Russia’s scoring machine and Turkey responding with a more even distribution by setter Naz Aydemir Akyol. Vying for a spot in the semis of the first ever European Games was enough to motivate every player to perform their best and Turkey seemed to be on route to the achievement of this goal as they won yet another challenge to pile up a small lead at 19:17; a time-out by Russian coach Vadim Pankov could not prevent the Turks from cashing also the next rally, and the party got started after an ace by Neriman Ozsoy completed a terrific 6:2 run for the 2011 European silver medallists.
“I am very tired and very happy! Especially in the last set I was exhausted and just wanted the match to finish as quickly as possible. We managed to have the right tactics against Russia. They are so strong at blocking so we needed to use a lot of energy to force our way through them. I want to congratulate Russia. They are a great team and have played a good tournament. I am glad that we are still in contention for a medal. With the win today we are exactly where we wanted to be as we can now decide of which colour this medal will be,” said Neriman Ozsoy, who spearheaded Turkey in the match by scoring 17 points, the second most prolific in the Turkish ranks after Gözde Yilmaz who recorded 23.
“We could have won but the quality of the game was not very good on our side. We lacked quality and consistency at setting and attacking, especially on our right side, and that represented an advantage for Turkey; also, our defence was worse than Turkey’s, but of course, we had spirit and desire to win. In terms of expectations, our minimum goal was to qualify for the quarter-finals, but I wish we hadn’t finished in fourth place in our pool but on a higher position, so we could have played a weaker team in this round and would have had a better chance to be in the semis,” Russia’s mentor Vadim Pankov said.
Azerbaijan vs The Netherlands 3:0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-14)
The Volleyball fans in Azerbaijan lived another day to remember at the Crystal Hall arena, as the host team qualified for the semifinals of the tournament being held in Baku. The local heroines will fight for the medals after beating The Netherlands in three sets, thus keeping alive the golden dreams of the organising country.
Driven by the motivation of reaching the anticipated semifinals on home ground, and inspired by the support coming from the stands, the local heroines presented an outstanding level of performance from the beginning of the clash. A suffocating pressure from the serving line, an overwhelming blocking system and the attacks completed by Polina Rahimova represented the pillars that built Azerbaijan’s success in the match.
In the first set, after a compelling domination by the local squad (8:2, 16:7), the Dutch side fought to recover the initial gap. Two sets balls were saved by Giovanni Guidetti’s ladies, but the clear difference in the scoreboard paid off for Azerbaijan, and an outstanding block by Ayshan Abdulazimova closed the period 25-21.
The Netherlands struggled to brush off their rivals’ domination, and entrusted their outcome in the encounter to Lonneke Slöetjes’ powerful spikes. However, the home side crossed out the starting lead of the visiting squad, forced a permanent tie in the second set and set their sight on the semis following their 25-23 set win.
Azerbaijan soon confirmed their intention to complete a clean sweep of the match by imposing a gripping start of the third set (8:3). The remarkable tally of points accomplished by Dutch star Lonneke Slöetjes was not sufficient for The Netherlands to extend the clash. Polina Rahimova stated her condition of best scorer and best spiker of the tournament thus far and, together with setter and captain Oksana Kurt, she carried the local team to the success of reaching the top four teams of the competition. A thunderous euphoria filled the crowded Crystal Hall arena when a sensational spike by Rahimova sealed the compelling 25-14 that confirmed the victory of the local heroines.
“We only had one chance today, either we win or we go. We tried our best, we talked a lot about this and we did it exactly like we talked. We played as a team, and that’s very important; we helped each other and we worked all together. Now we meet Turkey. The last time we played against them, we lost, but I hope that we can correct our mistakes and I hope that we will win,” said Azerbaijani opposite player and one of the stars of the match, Polina Rahimova.
“I am very disappointed right now. This was the key moment for us. We were hoping to play for the medals, and now we have nothing. It is a big disappointment. Azerbaijan played very strong, and especially their service was at a very high level. Also, we made too many mistakes. But I think that we kept on fighting and we were close in both the first and the second sets. Unfortunately, it was too late,” said the captain of the Netherlands Maret Balkestein-Grothues.
Belgium vs Serbia 2:3 (22-25, 25-19, 14-25, 25-21, 17-19)
Serbia were clear favourites in the last quarterfinal having won Pool B whereas Belgium was fourth in Pool A. Underdogs or not – Belgium came off to a flying start (11:4) totally ignoring what the bookmakers had predicted. The Serbian side was completely beside themselves and coach Zoran Terzic tried to shake things up by substituting Brankica Mihajlovic with captain Jelena Nikolic, though still behind (16:10) at the second technical timeout. That did change things around for Serbia who slowly cut the Belgian lead and shifted it at 21:20 in their own favour eventually winning the set 25-22.
Belgium did not leave the first set loss go on their mind and kept up their creative and floating display of Volleyball in the second set. The Serbian zookeepers were unable to keep the Yellow Tigers of Belgium in the short leash they had hoped for as the tigers were hungry for more points and Belgian setter Ilka Van de Vyver kept feeding her teammates treats with her calm hands (12:9 and 14:11). At 21:16 the leash finally broke and the entire Belgian side roared in enthusiasm and joy when they leveled the match 1:1 winning the set 25-19.
Belgium did not show as many teeth in the third set where the Serbian blocks of Bojana Zivkovic and Milena Rasic seemed like a living set of bars The Yellow Tigers could not penetrate. Combined with strong spiking from Jelena Nikolic and Tijana Malesevic, Serbia dotted the balloon of enthusiasm Belgium had been riding on winning the set clear 25-14.
A big part of Belgium’s success this far in the tournament has been that Ilka Van de Vyver has been able to scatter her setting to the entire Belgian side giving each and everyone the opportunity to score – and all have executed, off course. This was also the scenario in the fourth set where Els Vandesteene, Freya Aelbrecht, Charlotte Leys, and Laura Heyrman all rounded 10 points in the match. Belgium had a gap (13:9) but Serbia was 19 all before Belgium secured a well-deserved tiebreak 25-21.
The day ended as it started in Crystal Hall – with a tiebreak, and a tight one of the kind. In this absolute most crucial aspect of Volleyball none of the team let go of the other at no time (4:4) and Jovana Stevanovic hammered tie 7 all. The figures on the scoreboard also showed even numbers at 10, 11, 12, and 13 in this incredible drama. A missed serve from Milena Rasic gave Belgium their first match point at 14:13. Belgium did not convert, nor did they on their match points at 15, 16, and at 17 it was Serbia who had a golden opportunity to book a ticket for the semifinal. Belgium levelled the set 17:17 – in the true nature of this match, before Serbia had their second match point the point after. Belgium was convinced they had survived this one as well, before a challenge called by Serbian coach Zoran Terzic showed a net touch and suddenly Serbia had won the set 19-17 and the match 3:2.
Serbia will play Poland in the semifinal, June 25.
"This match was never ending! I was just thinking 'When is this match
going to end?' We had too much respect for Belgium; they have shown that they
are the team with the biggest heart of the tournament and I congratulate them.
I am also proud of my team because they were are able to keep the pressure
even in the difficult situations. I hope that we can learn the lesson from this
victory and that it will give us courage for the rest of the tournament,”
said the captain of Serbia, Jelena Nikolic.