IGOR GORGONZOLA NOVARA- PROSECCO DOC IMOCO CONEGLIANO 2-3
(19-25, 25-19, 23-25, 25-19, 10-15)
Igor Gorgonzola Novara: Villani dnp, Bosio 3, Bartolucci dnp, De Nardi, Fersino (L), Alsmeier 4, Ishikawa 9, Mims 21, Bonifacio 14, Aleksic 11, Mazzaro, Tolok 10, Akimova dnp, Squarcini dnp. Coach: Bernardi.
Prosecco DOC Imoco: Gabi 20, Zhu 22, De Gennaro, Haak 21, Wolosz, Lukasik, Chirichella 8, Fahr dnp, Bardaro dnp, Adigwe 1, Lanier dnp, Seki, Eckl 1, Lubian 3. Coach: Santarelli
Referees: Cappello and Saltalippi
Spectators: 4000 (sold out)
Set duration: 25’, 31’, 27’, 28’, 14’
Notes: Serving errors No 16, Co 16; Aces 4-6; Blocks 9-10
MVP: Gabi
The Panthers took the stage at PalaIgor for the 23rd round of the championship, in a classic match against Igor Gorgonzola Novara, the 56th duel in the history between these two teams, and the match did not disappoint expectations.
The Panthers already have the mathematical first place in the regular season secured four rounds in advance, having beaten Numia Vero Volley Milano last Wednesday at a sold-out Palaverde. Compared to Wednesday’s match, coach Daniele Santarelli partially varies the starting lineup: Seki completes the diagonal with Haak, Zhu returns as a starter alongside Gabi as wing spikers, in the middle there’s still Lubian with Chirichella making her first appearance as an opponent in Novara after 10 years, libero Moki De Gennaro. On the other side, coach Lollo Bernardi lines up Bosio-Mims in the diagonal, the wing spikers are Alsmeier and Tolok, Bonifacio and Aleksic as middle blockers, Fersino as libero.
The two teams meet again eight days after the Italian Cup semifinal. The contest is fiery from the first exchanges, the Panthers defend by bringing out their claws and raising the block: Gabi, Haak, and Lubian arrive punctually to shut down Novara’s attacks, with Marina’s monster block, Prosecco DOC Imoco takes the lead for the first mini-break (4-6). Bella Haak is unstoppable from position 2 thanks to Seki’s skillful setting, who is the starter for the day. After the first timeout called by the home bench, the yellow and blues do not falter and travel at very high percentages in attack: Gabi puts down two in a row (13-17), after a couple of reception errors by the Panthers, Igor Gorgonzola comes back into contact with Bonifacio scoring for the -1 (16-17). At PalaIgor, they dance the samba to Gabi’s spins (5 points in the set), while Bella Haak (6 points) breaks through the opponent’s block, and in a blink of an eye, Prosecco DOC Imoco takes the lead again (16-19). Novara confirms its indomitable spirit, Mims is inspired, but De Gennaro and her teammates are not to be outdone, in fact: the block becomes unzuperable (the fourth team block in the period). The Chinese superstar (6 points and 57% in the set!) also marks the 22nd point from position 4, and the first set is almost in the bag. The Japanese Seki is spectacular in defense against Tolok, and Conegliano flies (18-23). Finally, it’s Zhu who closes the curtain on the first set, giving the lead to Prosecco DOC Imoco.
The roar of PalaIgor accompanies the start of the second set, Prosecco DOC matches Novara’s intensity in defense once again. It’s Cristina Chirichella’s day, honored with a bouquet of flowers before the match by the club she played for 10 seasons, and the Neapolitan middle blocker steps up to give the Panthers the first break with a block-ace combo (1-3). Zhu imitates her teammate, scoring two in a row including one from 9 meters (4-6), Seki and De Gennaro deliver spectacular dives and recoveries in defense. Novara takes advantage of some attack errors by the Panthers, Bonifacio thanks the net for the ace at 11-9, coach Santarelli calls a timeout to reorganize and try to limit the many errors by his players (7 attack errors in the set). Upon returning, Gabi catches up for Prosecco DOC Imoco with the block (13-13), then Martyna Lukasik enters to bolster the back line because Igor Gorgonzola has escaped again (16-13). At 18-13, coach Santarelli changes the diagonal as well, captain Wolosz comes in with Adigwe: Chirichella (3 points in the set) plants her first fast of the match, but the Piemontese do not relinquish the lead (21-17). The Panthers don’t give up and get closer, but Aleksic lights up scoring three in a row for the home team, and in the end, another yellow-blue error hands the second set to Novara, evening the score.
In the third set, they start balanced, Nanami Seki makes the attack travel well, finally more harmonic, the 7-8 lead is put down by a great Gabi (who will be MVP at the end with 20 points on the scoreboard), and by this point, all the Panthers have scored points, set in rhythm by the Japanese setter. Balance reigns on Piemontese soil, after Bosio’s serving turn, the match is on a razor’s edge (11-11); Novara makes very few mistakes even in the third partial, pushing the Prosecco DOC Imoco’s defense to the limit, Haak puts down a superb pipe (15-15), Mims sends the diagonal out twice after the Panthers saved the impossible, then Chirichella finds the momentary advantage ace (18-19). Coach Santarelli dips into his bench resources again, introducing the “double change” with Wolosz and Adigwe to freshen up the diagonal: the captain gets Zhu going again from position 4 (20-21), then the young Italian echoes the Chinese, but Igor Gorgonzola answers blow for blow, carried by its public. The game is heated. There’s also space for Katja Eckl in serving, the arm-wrestling is won by Prosecco DOC Imoco with its firepower: Gabi crowns an exceptional set (7 points with 64% in attack and over 70% in reception!) showing her class, then Bella Haak (21 points at the end!) makes her weight felt in attack, and the final sprint rewards Prosecco DOC Imoco with 23-25. 2-1 and the yellow-blue fans at PalaIgor rejoice.
Spectators are ecstatic with the pace and intensity of the match, a mirror of the quality of the defenses is Moki De Gennaro, almost perfect in the first three sets and always a reference point for her teammates. Haak challenges a rampant Mims from a distance, who, together with Ishikawa and Aleksic, keeps the home attack volume high (4-5). However, overcoming the difficulties at the end of the third set, the Panthers find confidence, reduce errors, and regain control of the match (6-10). Prosecco DOC Imoco tries to pull away, but the goddess of luck kisses Igor Gorgonzola with Alsmeier’s dig point, and they stay close (9-11). Novara gets dangerous again, always the German Alsmeier finding significant hits, then Zhu in an “acrobatics” move puts the ball down, but the momentum is with the home team who escape (17-15). Mims is “on fire” in attack (9 points in the set with 60%), an unsolvable puzzle for Conegliano, Aleksic blocks and produces a hurtful break. Lukasik, Wolosz, and Adigwe replace the starters, the Panthers lose the thread of the game, and the deficit grows. A super rally closed by Alsmeier gives much energy to coach Bernardi’s team who flies ahead (23-17). Haak has another shot in her, but Mims extends the match to the tiebreak, the first of the championship for Prosecco DOC Imoco. The 25-19 also means the first point conceded to opponents in the yellow-blue’s championship season.
It’s the second tiebreak of the season (the first was in the Super Cup against Milan in… September), and it’s a thrilling fifth set that decides the challenge at PalaIgor: it opens with Gabi’s (MVP) block, the Panthers start better and take advantage of a couple of opponent errors before earning a block point with Zhu (2-5), the Chinese is the absolute protagonist (4 points in the tiebreak) until the changeover (6-8). Alsmeier doesn’t give up and makes her presence felt again, then Gabi cleans the line with a parallel, and it’s even an ace by Katja Eckl that brings the Panthers into double figures with a vital blitz by the South Tyrolean middle blocker (8-10). Igor Gorgonzola makes many mistakes in the decisive moment (4 errors in the 5th set), the experience and class of Zhu Ting (who will be the top scorer with 22 points) give the match point to Prosecco DOC Imoco who wins 3-2 with Mims’s error (10-15). The Panthers once again prove to have 7 lives, maintaining their season invincibility, after an “ugly, dirty, and mean” match. The 38th victory of the season comes amid the applause of the public for an exciting match until the end.
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(photo by Igor Novara Press Office)