Trento, 11 April 2018

Trentino Diatec-Cucine Lube Civitanova 2-3, the match report

Nicholas Hoag was the best scorer of the match (ph. Trabalza)

Report of the match. Both the starting six are almost the same of last matches; Trentino Diatec enters the field with Giannelli as setter, Teppan in the opposite role, Lanza and Kovacevic as spikers, Eder and Kozamernik as middle-blockers and De Pandis as libero. Cucine Lube Civitanova plays with Christenson as setter, Sokolov in the opposite role, Juantorena and Sander as spikers, Stankovic and Cester as middle-blockers and Grebennikov as libero. The hosts start the match in a better way with Christenson (block on Lanza) and Sander (pipe in the break-point phase) and then take the lead (3-5); they also manage to keep their advantage intact (5-7) and then to enlarge the gap (6-9 and 8-12) making the most of some net errors of the yellow-blues with Kozamernik and Kovacevic. In the central part of the match the gap doesn’t get bigger (12-16), but Trento doesn’t exploit its few break point chances. Just after the second technical time-out, the team from Marche ends the set going up to 19-13. Hoag’s services are not enough to change the evolution of the set because after the time-out called by Medej, thanks to Juantorena, Civitanova flies fast towards the 0-1 (19-25).
Trentino Diatec tries to react at the start of the second set with Lanza (attack and service) but the initial 3-1 and 5-3 become 5-5 with Juantorena. Lube is more focused and has more quality and after the first technical time-out runs away with great attitude (8-13) also thanks to the aces of Sander (two in a row). The hosts don’t let anything to the opponents (11-16) and Trento get demoralised giving the hosts the opportunity to reach 17-19 thanks to the tricky services of Kozamernik. The time out asked by Medej is very useful because after that his players turn effective again in the net area and from the line of service with Juantorena, achieving the qualification already on 21-25 (block of the newly entered Kovar on Vettori).

Without now any kind of problem regarding the qualification, the third set is fought by Cucine Lube with a completely different starting team (Zhukouki, Casadei, Milan and Marchisio); despite all of this, the team from Marche doesn’t disfigure (3-4, 8-6, 12-10). Trento accelerates with Eder’s services and Kovacevic’s attacks finding a greater advantage (13-9, 16-12). The second part of the set is all in favour of the yellow-blues who, with Giannelli and Vettori on fire get fast on 25-20.

In the fourth set Cavuto enters the field in change of Kovacevic; Oreste suffers in reception phase and in the net area and Lube makes the most of this to run on 2-5.
Trento struggles to react; it just recovers until the 6-8 but then Kovar and Stankovic get their team ahead (9-13 and 10-16). Trentino Diatec tries not to back down with Vettori and Hoag and manages to do this finding the draw on 20-20. The team from Marche creates two match-balls with Zhukouski (22-24) but then they give up on 27-25 with a Hoag on fire in the most crucial moment of the set.
During the tie-break Civitanova takes the situation in its hands with a score of 5-7; the yellow-blues answer with Cavuto at service who creates a 4-0 break (10-8). Lube immediately fills the gap on 10-10; Lube wins the set with a final sprint on 15-17 (attack mistake of Cavuto).

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