Men’s MEVZA League defending champions and current table leaders ACH Volley LJUBLJANA cruised to an impressive 3-0 (25-22, 25-14, 25-22) home victory over their closest rivals OK Merkur MARIBOR in a Slovenian derby on Saturday night.
Therefore, the ‘Orange Dragons’ extended their winning streak to ten matches in a row, they have not even dropped a single point this MEVZA League season so far. Slovenia’s reigning national champions, on the other hand, suffered their second defeat against ACH Volley Ljubljana in the main round. Anyway, OK Merkur MARIBOR are still sitting in second place and on the way to qualify for the Final Four tournament.
ACH Volley LJUBLJANA head coach Mladen Kasic: “First of all, congratulations to my players on their performance and on that convincing win against our toughest opponents. Today we proved once again that, when we play with tactical maturity and composure, it is very difficult to beat us at the Tivoli Hall. I expect a similar performance at the final tournament of the Slovenian Cup in a few days.”
In the second match of the men’s competition this evening, HAOK Mladost ZAGREB gave hosts UVC Holding GRAZ no chance, celebrating a clean sweep (25-19, 25-15, 25-17) at the Raiffeisen Sportpark. As a result, Croatia’s reigning national champions moved up to fifth place in the current standing on eleven points, while the Austrian side dropped to a 1-10 win-loss record. UVC Holding GRAZ is sitting in eighth place.
In the women’s MEVZA League bottom of the table OK Marina KASTELA suffered a 1-3 (16-25, 25-19, 18-25, 21-25) home defeat at the hands of third-placed HAOK Mladost ZAGREB in a Croatian derby.
Already on Wednesday, both teams from Zagreb are in MEVZA League action again, hosting Union Raiffeisen WALDVIERTEL and Vasas Óbuda BUDAPEST, respectively.
Final Four tournament hosts announced
SK Zadruga AICH/DOB and VB NÖ Sokol/Post were announced as Final Four tournament hosts. The men’s competition will most likely reach its climax on February 19 and 20, while the women’s should end on February 23 and 24. “I am very happy that both Final Four tournaments will take place in Austria for the first time,” MEVZA President Karl Hanzl said.
Men’s MEVZA League
17.12.: Union Raiffeisen WALDVIERTEL (AUT) vs. SK Zadruga AICH/DOB (AUT) 3-1 (20-25, 27-25, 25-16, 25-18)
18.12.: UVC Holding GRAZ (AUT) vs. HAOK Mladost ZAGREB (CRO) 0-3 (19-25, 15-25, 17-25)
18.12.: ACH Volley LJUBLJANA (SLO) vs. OK MERKUR MARIBOR (SLO) 3-0 (25-22, 25-14, 25-22)
22.12., 17:00: HAOK Mladost ZAGREB (CRO) vs. Union Raiffeisen WALDVIERTEL (AUT)
29.12., 18:00: TJ Spartak MYJAVA (SVK) vs. Union Raiffeisen WALDVIERTEL (AUT)
30.12., 18:00: VKP BRATISLAVA (SVK) vs. Union Raiffeisen WALDVIERTEL (AUT)
Women’s MEVZA League
18.12.: OK Marina KASTELA (CRO) vs. HAOK Mladost ZAGREB (CRO) 1-3 (16-25, 25-19, 18-25, 21-25)
22.12., 19:30: HAOK Mladost ZAGREB (CRO) vs. Vasas Óbuda BUDAPEST (HUN)
SPORTLIVE
