Volleyball: Champions League, Conegliano overwhelms Vasas Budapest. Now it’s up to Milan

After the victory in Novara yesterday, Conegliano (finalist last year and winner of the Champions League the year before) also got off to a great start to the Champions League

Conegliano-Budapest 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-19) Conegliano quickly closes the practice of the seasonal debut in the Champions League, liquidating the Hungarian champions Vasas Budapest in just under an hour and a half in the last match before the Club World Cup. Santarelli recovers Plummer and Haak, who were feverish a few days ago, but leaves De Gennaro at rest due to a problem in his knee. Pericati, Wolosz, Cook, De Kruijf and Squarcini also take the field. The technical and athletic superiority of the panthers is evident from the first exchanges (6-1) and grows along the way up to double figures (16-6). All the Gialloblù forwards easily overcome the opponent’s wall and finish the set with an overall 67%. Haak (8 points), Plummer and De Kruijf (4) are the best, even if Conegliano closes the set with 7 errors, 5 of which in serve. The gap is less wide after the field change, with the Magyars daring something more and the panthers less effective in closing the exchanges. On the score of 8-7 there is a jolt with Haak and Wolosz (14-10), just enough to reject the ambitions of the guests.

Park bench

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Santarelli also brings in Gray and Furlan in place of Plummer and Squarcini, as soon as the score widens to ever more reassuring margins. The panthers don’t lower the pace and control the game and the score even in the third set, also giving space to Carraro as director in the last few exchanges. The memories of three years ago when Budapest brought Conegliano, back from the Super Cup, to the tiebreak are far away. On Monday the team leaves for Antalya, where on Thursday they will make their debut in their third Club World Cup against Dentil Praia. (Mirco Cavallin)