PAOK edge San Roque to start European campaign on a high note

PAOK THESSALONIKI started their European campaign with a hard-fought 3-2 away victory (27-25, 25-20, 14-25, 24-26, 15-11) in Spain in their matchup with European Cups rookies CV San Roque LAS PALMAS. 

In the first set, the home team started stronger, taking an early lead at 6-3 and maintaining it at 10-6. However, PAOK responded with a 3-0 run to close the gap to 10-9. Increasing their pace, PAOK levelled the score at 14-14. With growing pressure on the hosts’ reception and strong offensive performances from Leonardo Ferreira do Nascimento (71%) and Aleksandar Ljaftov (56%), PAOK gained a crucial lead at 21-20. The two teams exchanged points, taking the set into overtime at 24-24. PAOK managed the critical moments better and ultimately secured the set win at 27-25. 

The second set began evenly, with the score level at 8-8. The home team then pulled ahead (13-9), but PAOK responded with a run of five straight points to take the lead at 14-13. The teams remained neck-and-neck until 19-19, with PAOK maintaining a strong reception rate (59%) and relying on Dimitrios Mouchlias (54%) offensively. A decisive 5-0 run gave PAOK a clear advantage at 24-19, which they capitalised on to win the set 25-20, thus taking a 2-0 lead. The home side paid a high price for their many unforced errors and for the absence of Erick Costa – who had suffered an injury in Almeria during a match scheduled for the Spanish national league. 

Probably feeling overly confident, PAOK got off to a slow start in the third set, allowing the hosts to take control at 10-5. The Spaniards extended their lead to 17-8 courtesy of the spikes coming from Jose Pedro Pinto and middle blocker Anderson Grossi, and despite coach Josko Milenkoski’s attempts to find solutions by bringing in Vasileios Mouchlias and Vuk Ivankovic, PAOK could not recover. The set ended in a landslide 25-14 in favour of the home side. 

The fourth set was a game of two halves. After a balanced start, PAOK went on a 7-0 run from 10-12 to 17-12. Despite maintaining a comfortable lead until 19-15, the hosts mounted a comeback to tie the set at 21-21 with Pinto and Mauro Fuentes as their most prolific scorers. With the teams trading points, the set went into overtime at 24-24. This time, San Roque secured a 26-24 win with a 2-0 run, thereby forcing the match into a tie-break. 

In the fifth set, the teams were even at 5-5, but a 4-0 run gave PAOK a decisive advantage at 9-5 as the hosts seemed to pay the price for the comeback they had mounted in the previous two sets. With a flawless attack rate (75%), PAOK held onto their lead, reaching 14-10. The home team saved one of four match points, but PAOK closed out the match at 15-11, thus claiming a 3-2 victory, which still leaves the door wide open for any potential outcome next week in Greece.