Big shocks headline first leg of the #CLVolleyW quarter-finals

Reigning champions VakifBank Istanbul and previously undefeated Fenerbahçe Opet Istanbul conceded painful losses, as their path to the SuperFinals looks murky, while none of the four quarter-finals in this season’s European premium competition were decided in straight sets.

On their path for an unprecedented three-peat in the #CLVolleyW, VakifBank Istanbul face a mountain to climb, after conceding a surprising 1:3 loss against A. Carraro Imoco Conegliano on their home court in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the European premium competition.

It is not an unprecedented situation for VakifBank, which conceded a 0:3 home loss last season against rivals Fenerbahçe Opet Istanbul in the semi-finals, only to bounce back and take the golden set on their way to the trophy, but this certainly looks a precarious position for the reigning champions, as they face a team riding a seven-match winning streak.

After taking the first set, 25:23, VakifBank collapsed in the next part of the match, with Conegliano taking a firm control of the match. Not only the Italian side did not concede more than 18 points in any of the next three sets, they properly dominated on both sides of the ball, as they looked unstoppable especially in the third set, which they started with a 8:1 run.

In fantastic form, Swedish ace Isabelle Haak was unstoppable, scoring 28 points in the match, as only Gabi Guimaraes (15 points)  managed to score more than 10 points for a lacklustre VakifBank, which looked totally out of their depth for the last part of the match, as they need serious improvements over the next week before the second leg of the quarter-finals.

Undoubtedly, the biggest shock was the first loss of the season from Fenerbahçe Opet Istanbul, the only team to have not conceded a set in their pool this season, as the Turkish side were huge favourites against Allianz MTV Stuttgart.

Twice did Fenerbahçe lead in the match, by taking the first (25:22) and the third sets (25:19), as stars Arina Fedorovtseva (31 points) and Magdalena Stysiak (16 points) were unstoppable at times.

Backed by over 2.000 fans, Stuttgart never bowed down to the pressure and fought until the bitter end, pushing the match into the fifth sets, by taking the second (26:24) and the fourth (25:20) sets. While Fenerbahçe faced adversity for the first time this season, they could not stop Krystal Rivers (23 points) and Jolien Knollema (16 points), as Stuttgart took the fifth set, 15:10, and produced the biggest shock of the season, with the Turkish side facing a must-win match on their home court next week.

With three Turkish side at the start of the quarter-finals, only Eczacıbaşı Dynavit Istanbul secured a win, but it came after a hard-fought match, 3:2, against Savino del Bene Scandicci, as the Italian side conceded their first loss in three matches against their counterparts, after winning the previous two in Round 4.

It looked like the Italian side, led by Ekaterina Antropova, with 20 points, had the game in their hands, leading twice, but Eczacıbaşı Dynavit Istanbul bounced back with another astonishing performance from star Tijana Boskovic, who had 31 points at the end of the match.

Down 2:1 at sets, Eczacıbaşı Dynavit Istanbul powered through in the last sets, taking them 25:17 and 15:10, but they need to perform even better in the second leg, as a 3:0 or 3:1 win by Scandicci in that match opening the gates for a maiden semi-finals berth for the Italian side.

Allianz Vero Volley Milano made a huge step towards their maiden semi-finals appearance in the European premium competition, after being eliminated twice in the quarter-finals in their previous participations, with a 3:1 win over Polish side ŁKS Commercecon Łódź.

Dana Rettke (16 points) and 14 points from Paola Egonu and Miriam Sylla helped the Italian side clinch a big win, with only a blip on the radar in the second set, which they dropped, 14:25. However, Łódź failed to make an impression in the other sets, taking no more than 18 points, with the Italian side ready to punch their ticket to the next phase in the second leg.

The second leg of the quarter-finals of the CEV Champions League 2024 Women is scheduled for 28 and 29 February.