22/12/2016 19:36
Greek rookies put up a fight, but Hapoel KFAR SABA emerge victorious
2017 CEV Volleyball Cup - Women
Santorini, Greece, December 21, 2016. Israel’s Hapoel KFAR SABA had claimed a 3-0 home victory last week in the first of two matches with A.O. THIRAS on schedule for the opening round of the 2017 CEV Volleyball Cup – Women. As a result, the Israelis needed to take ‘only’ two sets from their re-match with THIRAS to secure their spot in the next round but the Greeks were determined to put up a fight in what was their first, historic home match in the European Cups. Some 1,000 fans were in attendance – a huge crowd considering that Santorini has a population of 12,000 – but Hapoel eventually claimed a 3-2 victory.
The first set was very close before A.O. THIRAS edged ahead at 24-21; Hapoel nevertheless responded by scoring five points in a row with Anna Velikiy standing behind the service line and KFAR SABA finally emerged victorious at 26-24.
The hosts seemed kind of shocked because of this setback and soon trailed 0-4 in the second set. However, A.O. THIRAS managed to claim a three-point advantage and never lost it, eventually finishing the set 25-23 in their favour.
Hapoel cruised to a five-point lead in the third set as A.O. THIRAS struggled with their service. The visitors held on to it and eventually finished the set off at 25-19, and with it secured their progression to the next round. Still A.O. THIRAS wanted to put on a show for their fans and they delivered a very solid performance in set 4 which they won 25-18. However, in the tie-break Hapoel claimed an early three-point lead which they could capitalise on to bring the match to an end at 15-11. Despite the loss, the fans showed their appreciation for the performance of the home side and the players of A.O. THIRAS looked very touched by that.
Chen Hymelfarb, head coach of Hapoel KFAR SABA, said: “It was a pleasure to play in such a great atmosphere and we are of course happy with our qualification to the next round. A.O. THIRAS is a very good team and we knew that coming here, so this makes our victory even more remarkable.”
Apostolos Oikonomou, head coach of A.O. THIRAS, said: “Congratulations to Hapoel, they were better than us. The way we lost the first set was the pivotal moment of the game. We won the second, but in the third one Hapoel were clearly the better team. I want to thank all of our fans for being here with us tonight. The way they cheered us on throughout the entire match was really heart-warming, and they did so even though we failed to win. That is what Volleyball is all about and I am proud of them.”
Click here for more info including detailed stats of the match
|