Slovakia finished the competition with a victory. The victory allowed Slovakia finish this round second in Pool B, while Ukraine fell to the third position. Unfortunately they did not earn enough wins and ranking points to reach the Final Four.
Pool B
Slovakia vs. Ukraine 3-1 (23-25, 30-28, 25-14, 25-13)
Both teams began the match going head to head in the opening set of the match. A short run put Slovakia ahead at 23-20, but Ukraine hit right back, scoring five points in a row and claiming the first set. The Ukrainians continued their good performance into the second set, taking a 12-9 lead, but Slovakia came close to 11-12. The real challenge was yet to come when Slovakia tied at 17-17 and both teams fought point by point until Slovakia won the second set at 30-28. The third set was under control of the Slovakian side, who established an advantage at 16-9 and maintained the lead until winning 25-14. The story was repeated in the fourth set, where Slovakia worked to gain a significant lead from the first rallies and patiently increased their advantage until finishing the match at 25-13.
- Romana Kriskova and Karin Palgutova top scored with 25 and 24 points respectively for Team Slovakia
- On Ukraine’s side, Yuliya Boyko, Karyna Denysova and Maryna Mazenko scored 10 points apiece for their team
- Tereza Hrusecka was the best blocker of the game, scoring 6 our of 13 blocks gained by Slovakia
- Ukraine scored 11 blocks, with Yuliya Boyko emerging as the leading blocker with 4 points
“We played on a high in the first two games. Our emotional power finished after that. We played two games in less than 24 hours and it was hard for us. We tried to do our best.”
Vladimir Orlov
Coach of Ukraine
“I am very satisfied with the win. It was very important to finish this tournament in style. My team played well. We deserved the victory.”
Marco Fenoglio
Coach of Slovakia
