VC WIESBADEN crash PAOK to continue triumphant #CEVChallengeCupW march
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Germany’s VC WIESBADEN continue their triumphant march in the women’s CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup. On Thursday, they did deliver another sensational performance, this time at the PAOK Sports Arena to down AC PAOK THESSALONIKI of Greece in three straight sets (25-18, 25-22, 25-14).
Darko Zakoc“I want to apologise to our fans for this second consecutive heavy defeat on our home court. Unfortunately, we cannot compete against teams like VC WIESBADEN, which have a strong offense, good blocking, and defence. Our softness in both attack and reception does not help us. In the second set, we had the opportunity to change the rhythm, but we easily lost three consecutive points, and our resistance collapsed.”
Head coach of PAOK
The beginning of the first set was well below par for PAOK, so VC WIESBADEN could take an early lead (8-3), which they maintained halfway through the set (16-7). Despite PAOK’s efforts to find solutions, low reception percentages prevented them from closing the gap, with the German team holding a significant lead towards the end (20-13). Although PAOK showed a slight reaction, narrowing the score to 18-23, VC WIESBADEN comfortably claimed the opening set with the score of 25-18.
In the second set, PAOK displayed a better performance, levelling the score at 15-15 after previously trailing 8-12 and 10-15, respectively. The two teams remained close in score, and the fate of the set was quite uncertain. In the final stretch, PAOK and VC WIESBADEN started evenly at 22-22. However, the visitors had the upper hand after scoring three straight points.
With a clear psychological advantage after winning the second set, VC WIESBADEN dominated the third set, establishing an impressive early lead at 13-6. PAOK, clearly affected by the outcome of the second set, could not mount a comeback, and the gap widened to double digits at 18-8. Without a change in the way the match unfolded, VC WIESBADEN deservedly claimed the victory with a comprehensive 25-14 score to seal their 3-0 win.
The rematch in Germany is scheduled for Wednesday, January 17. PAOK needs a clean victory with a score of 3-0 or 3-1 to vie for an all-decisive Golden Set.
Elisavet Iliopoulou, setter of AC PAOK: “We are not satisfied with our performance. We played on our home court, so we should have capitalised on that advantage. We need to move on and leave today’s game behind. We still have the opportunity in Germany to secure a win. VC WIESBADEN is a good team, but if we play well and at a better pace, I believe you will see a different image of us.”
Benedikt Frank“I do not believe the qualification is over just yet, because there is a second game. We had a good performance despite the challenging conditions we faced. I am sure PAOK will explore every idea to prevent us from advancing to the semis. It will be a very nice battle in Wiesbaden and let us hope we are equally lucky.”
Head coach of VC WIESBADEN