After 58 wins in a row, the handball team of SG BBM Bietigheim had to be content with one point again for the first time at the Romanian capital city club CSM Bucharest.
The women’s handball team of SG BBM Bietigheim dropped points for the first time in the Champions League and had to settle for a 28:28 (16:13) against the Romanian champions CSM Bucharest.
Coach Markus Gaugisch’s team started very concentrated in front of 3,500 spectators and was able to develop a three-goal lead after less than 15 minutes. Veronika Mala was the outstanding player on the Bietigheim side in this phase and shone as a goal scorer and prudent ball distributor. In the final phase of the first half, however, Bietigheim lost the thread a bit, otherwise the half-time lead could have been even clearer. Four-time world handball player Cristina Neagu managed to keep Bucharest in the game.
Bietigheimers with big problems after the break
Even after the break, the Bietigheimers did not find their way back into the game. Inga Smits and Co. had such great difficulties on the defensive, especially with Crina Pintea, who was substituted on the pivot, that Bucharest was able to turn the game around and pull away with three goals up to the 45th minute. Gaugisch reacted with a goalkeeper change and brought on Melinda Szikora for Gabriela Moreschi.
That helped. Szikora shone with good saves and made it possible for Bietigheim to fight back bit by bit. But it wasn’t until the 52nd minute that Kim Naidzinavicius put Bietigheim back in front for the first time. But this lead was not enough for Bietigheim to win. A technical error by Kaba Gassama Cissokho in the final minute allowed Malin Larsen Aune to equalize for Bucharest to make it 28-28 five seconds before the final siren. Bietigheim are now second in Champions League Group A with five points, one point behind Vipers Kristiansand of Norway.
