Tenerife Libby’s LA LAGUNA celebrate dream return to European competition

Tenerife Libby’s LA LAGUNA put the finishing touch to a dream return to European competition this Thursday, booking their place in the Round of 16 of the CEV Challenge Cup with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Maccabi XT Haifa at Pablos Abril. The result followed Tuesday’s 3-1 win at the same venue, in front of their ever-loyal and passionate supporters.

Tenerife Libby’s LA LAGUNA made an excellent start, building on the performance they had delivered on Tuesday. From the opening exchanges, Sullie Sundara and Neea-Maria Joki put the Israeli defence under pressure to give their team an early lead (5-1). The side coached by Ivan Petkov fought back, with Sara Sakradzija leading the way in attack. Maccabi XT managed to close the gap (8-6), but the Tenerife side remained in front. Ricardo Lemos’ team then raised their level, finding solutions both in their build-up play and at the net, with Antonela Fortuna attacking effectively from the outside and Carla Jiménez and Yeisy Soto making their presence felt at the block to double the lead (14-7). The home side continued to dominate every aspect of the game, with Sundara once again delivering crucial points (19-14). Fortuna wrapped up the opening set (25-15).

In the second set, after a brief exchange of points, Tenerife Libby’s LA LAGUNA soon took control again, finishing rallies quickly and forcing Petkov to call a timeout (7-3). The home side continued to operate with clockwork precision, giving their opponents little room to respond and extending a lead that was becoming increasingly difficult for Maccabi XT to overcome (18-7). The visitors put together a good spell to reduce the deficit (22-14), but Lemos called a timeout to reorganise his team. A service from Priscila Souza Ramos that sailed long then sealed the second set and put Tenerife 2-0 ahead (25-17).

The third set proved more demanding, as Maccabi XT HAIFA put up a fight with a strong spell of their own (8-10). However, Tenerife Libby’s responded in time to bring the tie to a swift conclusion. With perfect coordination between defence and attack, the home side completed a dream European night through a powerful finish from the ever-present Sundara (25-16), celebrating their long-awaited qualification alongside their supporters.

It was a reward for the team’s hard work, with the next challenge awaiting between late November and early December, when Tenerife Libby’s LA LAGUNA will contest the Round of 16 of the CEV Challenge Cup against Šelmy BRNO. The Czech side reached this stage after defeating VA Uniza ŽILINA (Slovakia) 3-1 and 3-2 in the Round of 32.

Before then, however, attention turns back to the Liga Iberdrola. The next challenge comes this Sunday, with the La Laguna derby against Fedes Ascensores at Pablos Abril (18:00).