Monza, 03 April 2024

Mint Vero Volley Monza-Itas Trentino 1-3, the match report

Chronicle of game 2. No surprises in the starting six proposed by the two coaches: Soli confirms Acquarone as setter, Rychlicki at the opposite end, Michieletto and Lavia in area 4, Kozamernik and Podrascanin in the middle, and Laurenzano as libero. Eccheli, still without Maar, answers with Kreling as setter, Szwarc as opposite, Loeppky and Takahashi as spikers, Galassi and Di Martino in the middle, Gaggini as libero. The start was very contracted for both teams, especially on serve, with many errors on both sides. The first to find continuity was Trento, which, with Kozamernik (ace and half an ace), immediately accelerated to 9-6, forcing the hosts to take refuge in a time out. When the game resumed, it was again the Gialloblù who laid down the law with their middle blocker (11-6), and then with Lavia’s block, they repulsed the Brianzoli's attempt to recover (from 14-12 to 17-12). Eccheli spent the second time-out, but after that there was only room for the tricolour players, who with Michieletto and Podrascanin (attack and block) accelerated further (23-14) and quickly closed out the first set with Rychlicki, already at 25-15.
Monza tried to retaliate after the change of court, sharpening its serve and Takahashi's attack; within a few minutes the locals accelerated (4-7 and 6-10), forcing Soli to interrupt the game. At resumption, Itas Trentino suffered (8-12) but did not lose focus and with Lavia on the shields slowly recovered the gap up to 15-15, inspired by an error in the first half of Galassi and a block by Kozamernik on the Rotalian middle blocker. The Italian champions put their noses ahead with a block by Rychlicki (18-17), but then Monza replied with Di Martino and an ace by Galassi himself (18-21). It was the cue that decided the set, because then Vero Volley did not concede anything more (19-23) and closed the accounts already on 21-25 with a serve error by the newly entered Nelli.
Led by Lavia and Michieletto, the guests took the reins of the game in the third set (4-2 and 8-5). Kozamernik blocked Loeppky for +4 (10-6), imitated a few seconds later by Podrascanin (on Szwarc for 13-8); then the Gialloblù ran away with more and more authority and determination, thanks again to Alessandro (18-12 and 20-13). The external 2-1 came on 25-18, with Eccheli misusing the video-check, in fact giving the last point to the Italian champions to question the system for a possible foul of Nelli's foot (which there was not) at the serve (game interrupted and point for Trento).
Michieletto's winning serves (two) offered the first cue during the fourth set (from 6-5 to 8-5), after an initial head-to-head struggle. Monza quickly climbed back up the slope with the same weapon (Loeppky's ace), finding parity at 10. The guests raised the intensity in defence and with the block, finding with Kozamernik and Acquarone the points that pushed them ahead 19-16. It was the decisive spurt, because then Monza got nervous and left more and more space to their opponents, who quickly headed for the credits: 25-18 and 2-0 in the series.

Trentino Volley Srl
Press Office