OK Merkur MARIBOR ends ACH Volley’s 16-year dominance
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OK Merkur MARIBOR are Slovenia’s national champions for the first time since the 1992/1993 season. The team coached by Sebastijan Škorc sensationally ended the 16-year dominance of ACH Volley LJUBLJANA as they claimed their third title in history.
ACH Volley LJUBLJANA, serial Slovenia’s champions with no less than seventeen titles to their name, started the final series with a 2-0 lead against Merkur - which had topped the standings at the end of the regular season. When everyone seemed to realise that no sensation was in sight, OK Merkur MARIBOR struck back and won the championship by closing the final series in the fifth set of the fifth game, thus accounting for a true Volleyball euphoria in Maribor.
“We had built this club and team practically from zero. Only those who were with us know what our team went through in this final series and throughout the whole season. We had an extremely young team with only one experienced player, Alen Šket, who was like a father to the others. The team was growing from practice to practice, we worked extremely hard and in the end, we looked solid and experienced. Our players played for those who could not help us in the finals and really gave even more than they were capable of to bring this title to Maribor. We will host the CEV Champions League next year for the first time in history, which is unbelievable,” head coach Sebastijan Škorc commented.
Rok Možič“I really do not know what to say. The tears of joy show it all. What we have achieved is just unbelievable. This is an incredible team, with an incredible heart. I am sure that we will hear many times more about this success story. I think that claiming this title is the very best way for me to say goodbye to my club.”
Best scorer of the Slovenian championship series
“We had a 2-0 lead in our hands and a good opportunity to end the final series after three matches. We did not take advantage of that, and the series continued to a decisive fifth match. We were in a good position in the fifth set, but they fought back and all I can say is that their win is a well-deserved one. Congratulations to Maribor,” the head coach of ACH Volley Matija Pleško said right after the final match.
The best men’s teams will conclude the season with a cup competition starting already on Monday with the eight-final matches in Ljubljana. The women's cup final was cancelled due to the national team’s preparations for the upcoming CEV EuroVolley 2021 qualifiers.