Teams from Latvia and Lithuania triumph at EEVZA U18 Beach Volleyball Championships
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Teams from Latvia and Lithuania triumphed with the gold medals on Wednesday, as the 2021 edition of the EEVZA U18 Beach Volleyball Championships reached its climax in Vilnius. The home women’s team enjoyed the sunny weather and spread some good vibes with their performance at the venue located at the very heart of the Lithuanian capital city.
The last day of the competition started with the women’s semis, where home hopes Vilunė Rauluseviciute/Rusne Rutkauskaite left no chance to Latvia’s Daniela Konstantinova and Zaiga Kalvane as they cruised to a comprehensive 2-0 victory (21-18, 21-12). In the second semi, Estonia’s Karlotta Kattai/Grete Jürgenson needed two sets only as well (21-17, 21-19) to outplay another Latvian team in Kate Vasiljeva/Eliza Dreimane.
In the bronze medal match, two Latvian teams engaged in a derby where a spot on the rostrum was at stake. Daniela Konstantinova and Zaiga Kalvane fought hard to finish the competition on a high note and they eventually beat their compatriots Kate Vasiljeva/Eliza Dreimane 2-1 (16-21, 21-16, 15-12).
The gold medal match was a real drama. The two teams fought for every rally, with the home stars claiming the first set, before their opponents from Estonia responded by taking the second. Both teams gave their best in the last and all-important third set, however more luck on their side and more mistakes by the rivals in the deciding moments helped the Lithuanian team score the needed points. Rauluseviciute and Rutkauskaite were obviously happy to celebrate their unexpected win against the very emotional Kattai and Jürgenson, who gave their all for the win, but lacked a little bit of luck in the end.
Vilunė Rauluseviciute/Rusne Rutkauskaite (LTU)“We did not expect to get into the final four, so the first place is a ‘wow’ for us. We wanted to finish among the top eight and when we accomplished that goal, it was a lot of fun. We were not playing to the best of our abilities on the first day, as this is our first year together as a team. The game improved a bit and when we won the semi-final, we realised we could play at eye level with everyone. Of course, this victory will be an additional motivation for us to play Beach Volleyball."
Newly-crowned U18 EEVZA champions
As they had done earlier in the competition, Latvian players remained dominant in the men’s semis as well. Lithuanian youth champions Karolis Lanevski and Daniil Miscenko lost their match 0-2 (12-21, 15-21) to Latvians Matiss Salkovskis and Gustavs Auzins. Later in the day, they had to acknowledge another 0-2 loss (16-21, 15-21) at the hands of another Latvian team, Kaspars Kronbergs and Toms Emils Liepa, in the bronze medal game.
Davis Teteris/Olivers Bulgacs had reached the final without suffering a single loss in the tournament and there they beat their compatriots Salkovskis/Auzins 2-0 (21-18, 21-18) to cap their perfect campaign in the event.
Marius Vasiliauskas“The level of players in all three Baltic countries is very similar. Maybe only the Latvian boys are a little bit stronger. The most important thing is that such championship could take place even in these circumstances, thus giving the players an opportunity to play. All players are still young and it will depend on their willing to work, how much they will grow."
Vice-President of the Lithuanian Volleyball Federation
“The victory of our girls did not surprise me so much, because at such an age it is difficult to predict anything. Teams play one match well and the next one badly. After the first day, it seemed that many Latvian teams would be in the last four, but eventually they were not in the final. Those who played better in the decisive moments won," he added.
The EEVZA Youth Championships will resume soon, as the U16 competition will run in Vilnius from July 30 to August 1.
Visit www.eevza.eu for further information, including detailed results.