Cody Kessel tries to crack Perugia’s block Photo: picture alliance / Live Media | Loris Cerquiglini/LiveMedia/ip
From BZ/dpa
The BR Volleys said goodbye to the Volleyball Champions League with a respectable performance.
The German champions lost to world-class Italian team Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia on Wednesday evening in the second leg of the quarter-finals, only after vigorous resistance and a 2-1 lead in the sets 2-3 (26-24, 21-25, 25-22, 17-25, 13:15). In the first encounter a week earlier, the Bundesliga leaders had lost 3-1.
The volleys trumped furiously over long stretches in Perugia’s Pala Barton. Her respect for the big favorite was limited. Anton Brehme got the first set ball in the first round at 24:23, Ruben Schott hit the second block by hitting the opposing block and Marek Sotola finally converted the third to a surprising 26:24.
Perugia had apparently not yet understood the loss of the sentence as a stimulant. The BR Volleys stayed level and didn’t let the loss of the second round throw them off course. Setter Johannes Tille not only led the game carefully, he also blocked hard and repeatedly put pressure on the opponent with his serve. In addition, libero Satoshi Tsuiki liked with some spectacular defensive actions.
With a 2-1 lead, the Berliners even vaguely sensed the chance to force the favorites into a golden set that would be decisive for progress with a 3-1 win. But Perugia countered and exercised the dominance expected from the start in the fourth period.
Due to the victory in the first leg, the two won sets were enough for the Italians to advance to the semi-finals. In the tie-break that followed, both teams were only concerned with reputation.