Projekt WARSZAWA and Aero ODOLENA VODA win big in #CEVChallengeCupM

In an eagerly anticipated matchup scheduled for the 16th Finals of the men’s Challenge Cup, Slovenia’s Calcit KAMNIK suffered a home defeat against PlusLiga leaders Projekt WARSZAWA by 0-3 (14-25, 23-25, 17-25). The return match is scheduled for next Wednesday at 7 pm in Warsaw.

Calcit faced a tough opponent as the team from the Polish capital city, along with Italy’s Mint Vero Volley MONZA, is considered the top contender for the first place in the competition. Adding to the challenge, Calcit’s form has dipped since their victory against ACH Volley LJUBLJANA in the Slovenian championship two weeks ago. Confirming their recent struggles, the team suffered a defeat in Kranj last Saturday. On the other hand, Projekt WARSZAWA remains undefeated in the highly competitive Polish league after seven matches. The advantage was clearly on their side heading into the match in Kamnik, and they lived up to expectations on the court.

In the first set, the home team followed the guests only until the fifth point. After a service ace from Kévin Tillie, the Poles took the lead by three points (11-8), eventually reaching a decisive moment with four consecutive blocks by Andrzej Wrona, which moved the score to 17-10 in their favour. Calcit KAMNIK soon accepted their defeat in the opening set, which concluded with an own error.

The second set began differently, with the home team looking more focused. After two mistakes by the guests, KAMNIK took a 5-1 lead. Even after a half-minute timeout by Piotr Graban, Calcit did not relent. They were more efficient in attack, performed better in blocking, and maintained a four-point lead (13-9). However, after some weaker receptions, the Poles levelled the score to 14-14 with an ace from Jan Firlej and took the lead at 15-14 after a Calcit error. Although Uroš Nikolić equalised with a block at 15-15, it was the last tie in the second set. With a service ace from Linus Weber, Projekt WARSZAWA extended their lead to three points (20-17). Calcit had a chance to equalise at 23-23, but instead the guests secured two set points with a block, before capitalising on the second to take a 2-0 lead.

In the third set, the Poles maintained a high level of performance in reception, facilitating their attack, and continued to excel in blocking. They gained a 5-2 lead through this element of the game and extended it to 7-3 after a Slovenian mistake. Although the home team closed the gap to two points (8-10), another block, this time by Tillie, put them behind by as many as five points (8-13). A half-minute timeout by the home coach momentarily halted the momentum of the Polish team. Calcit KAMNIK scored three consecutive points on Uroš Planinšič’s service, but they could not get any closer than two points. The match was decided after Artur Szalpuk’s serves, as Projekt WARSZAWA secured four consecutive points for a 21-14 lead. Like in the first two sets, the third concluded with a mistake from the home team.

Črtomir Bošnjak, player of Calcit: “The Poles started the game with their first team, which should be mentioned, but it is true that our energy is no longer what we knew until now, and it showed in the game. In the second set, they brought us back into the game with a few consecutive mistakes, so we felt that we could play, but slowly the balance shifted to their side again. In the end, we were a bit short, and we need to work on that so that there will not be any surprises in the championship on Saturday and that we rise to the level we have been at before. It is not that we are tired, but we are currently in some kind of a limbo that is hard to explain.”

Elsewhere, Spain’s CV MELILLA MSC suffered a heavy loss at the hands of Czechia’s Aero ODOLENA VODA, with the match ending in a 3-0 victory for the away team. 

The hosts lacked consistency especially in attack, whereas the Czech team took good advantage of their mistakes. With the score standing at 6-10 in the first set, local coach Salim Abdelkader had to call a timeout. It had the desired effects since CV MELILLA MSC closed in at 10-11, but it was only a small glimpse of hope, since the visitors soon extended their advantage to 15-12. With remarkable fighting spirit rather than good play, CV MELILLA fought back again to 15-16. However, the remainder of the set fully belonged to the Czech team as they cruised to a commanding 25-21 set win. 

The start of the second set was a close affair up to 5-all. However, slowly but surely the Czechs reasserted their supremacy, especially courtesy of their impressive blocking game. Their advantage did grow steadily and remained between four to five points – and CV MELILLA did not stand a real chance at closing in (25-19). After a close start to the third set, Aero ODOLENA VODA did resume their march by moving the score from 8-7 to 11-7 and they enjoyed a comfortable six-point advantage at 15-9. The blocking and serving game of the visiting team was still extremely effective and CV MELILLA could not find a way to turn the tide (25-18). With this result, next week the Czechs will have to take two sets ‘only’ to secure their progression to the next round. On the other hand, CV MELILLA will have to win by 3-0 or 3-1 to force a Golden Set. 

Romania’s Steaua BUCURESTI were among the winners on Wednesday night as well. The Romanian vice-champions beat Austria’s McDonalds RIED IM INNKREIS 3-1 (25-18, 25-13, 19-25, 25-16). It was a very special match for Steaua’s libero Philipp Kroiss, a member of the Austrian men’s national team. The hosts outplayed their opponents in every element of the game, with Marius Iftime and Gabriel Alexandru Bontea sharing the top scoring honours on a tally of 17 points. The re-match in Austria is scheduled for next Wednesday.