10/02/2016 22:11
Dinamo MOSCOW upset 3,000 German fans in Dresden
2016 CEV DenizBank Volleyball Champions League - Women
Dresden, Germany, February 10, 2016. It was a very special Volleyball night at Margon Arena on Wednesday evening where hosts DRESDNER SC delivered a strong performance before a crowd of 3,000 but ended up losing their first matchup with Russian giant Dinamo MOSCOW in the Playoffs 12 of the 2016 CEV DenizBank Volleyball Champions League – Women. The Muscovites cruised to a 3-1 win (33-31, 21-25, 25-22, 25-11) to get the right edge for the re-match which is set to follow in two weeks in the Russian capital.
The first set was a real high-class battle. Dinamo MOSCOW was the first team to take a comfortable lead at 21-16 but the hosts fought back showing a lot of power in attack but also a big heart and a lot of determination. The end of the set was a real drama as DRESDNER SC managed to defend five set points and had five possibilities on their own to finish it off. However, it was Russian superstar Nataliia Obmochaeva, who scored 12 points in this set, to have the last say with another powerful attack at the sixth attempt for Dinamo (33-31).
Although the Russian powerhouse took immediately a 3-0 lead in the second set, the hosts continued to fight at a very high level with strong serves, hard attacks and a very good job in block and defence. DRESDNER SC levelled the score at 5-5 and went on to take the lead (12-7). After some time-outs it was mostly Obmochaeva who had to take the responsibility and who still scored time and again for Dinamo. She lead her team to an 18-17 lead but this time DRESDNER SC stayed strong and the Romanian national player Nneka Onyejekwe cashed the second set point for the German champions at 25-21.
In the third set the 3,000 spectators in attendance at Margon Arena got to see a close battle again but this time the hosts produced too many mistakes in attack and serve so that Obmochaeva and her teammates could get the right edge towards the end of the set. After the score stood at 23-22 for the Russians and a time-out asked by Dinamo, Obmochaeva scored one more point and American outside spiker Gina Mancuso - who had joined the actions shortly before for Katharina Schwabe - made a mistake in attack so Dinamo took a 2-1 lead in the match (25-22).
The fourth set was an easy run for the Russian favourites. After the score of 3-3 Dinamo MOSCOW raised their level and with a 9-0 run the team of coach Yury Panchenko took a commanding lead at 12-3. The hosts made again too many mistakes in every element of the game so they couldn’t maintain their high level from the first three sets and after 119 minutes it was a block against Michelle Bartsch that finished that match at 25-11 for a 3-1 win by Dinamo MOSCOW.
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