In the sold-out JUFA Arena in Bleiburg, SK Posojilnica Aich/Dob brings the MEVZA Cup 2017/18 to Austria. In a dramatic final, the Carinthians beat the Slovenian team of Calcit Volley Kamnik in 3:1 sets. For Austria’s number 1, this is the biggest success in the club’s history so far. In the match for third place, defending champion ACH Volley Ljubljana also beat Mladost Zagreb (CRO) in four sets.
The final was an open exchange of blows from the very beginning and over the entire two-hour period. The first set already offered suspense and drama, which became the mirror image of the entire match. The guests from Slovenia got off to a better start, but Aich/Dob was able to hold on to it. It was up to 18:18 that the hosts took the lead for the first time. With a powerful service and driven by the 1,000 spectators in the completely sold out JUFA Arena, the Carinthians secured their first round with a second set of 25:22 and then went to Kamnik with 19:25. Coach Matjaz Hafner on the side of the Carinthians reacted and brought Jan Krol and Nejc Pušnik. Together with Lukasz Wiese (tournament’s MVP), Aich/Dob made the dream in the following two rounds perfect. “It was in my head to win the title in front of our own audience in our own arena. Now it’s a reality. Simply unbelievable! Team, coach and audience were simply sensational during the last two days”, says manager Martin Micheu. For SK Posojilnica Aich/Dob, winning the title is the biggest success in the history of the club.
Gašper Ribic, coach of the opponents, pays full respect to the new title holder:”They were simply better today, especially in the attack they were superior. We have achieved the best result in our MEVZA history so far with second place, leaving Bleiburg uplifted.” Both teams will be competing for the national championship titles in the coming weeks.
Title defender wins bronze medal
The ACH Volley Ljubljana, who arrived as the winner of the basic round and thus as the favourites, showed their class in the match for third place against Mladost Zagreb. In exactly two hours, the top Slovenian team achieved a smooth 3:1 victory. “Yesterday we were caught on the wrong foot. We have won the last three games against Calcit clearly, in the MEVZA Cup, the Slovenian Cup and the national championship. We thought we just had to go out to the field and play, the finale can’t be taken anyway. Kamnik was perfectly tuned and played really well. For today we were able to mentally focus the team. It wasn’t really easy, we’re not used to playing for third place. Accordingly, I am very satisfied with today’s performance. As of tomorrow, the focus will be on defending the title in the Slovenian championship”, says ACH Volley Ljubljana coach Zoran Kedacic. Darko Antunovic, manager of the defeated Croatian, is also quite positive despite the two defeats of his men’s team after this weekend:”We have brought our teams into the final four in both the women’s and men’s competition. This is already a huge success. Next year, of course, we want to be among the top 4 again with the men and improve our final result.”
The MEVZA Cup season will end with the women’s finals in Békéscsabai at 2:30 pm today. In the final from 17:30h Linamar Békéscsabai (HUN) and VK UP Olomouc (CZE) will meet.
