Italy U19W on the top of Europe
Recap
The U19W Italian national team did not disappoint their fans, continuing the legacy of their compatriots from this Volleyball summer. After winning the gold in U22M, U18M, U21W and U17W European Championships, held earlier this year, now the U19W team did the same, claiming the title at the tournament that took place from August 27 to September 4 in Skopje, North Macedonia.
In the Big Finale, the Italians, coached by Marco Mencarelli, prevailed after a thrilling five-setter against Serbia, while in the Bronze medal match, Poland disappointed at 3-1 the Netherlands.
The trophy goes back to Italy after fours years, as their last gold was in 2018.
U19W Dream Team
Most Valuable Player
Julia Ituma (ITA)
Best Setter
Nina Mandović (SRB)
Best Outside Spikers
Karolina Staniszewska (POL)
Aleksandra Uzelac (SRB)
Best Middle Blockers
Nausica Acciarri (ITA)
Hena Kurtagić (SRB)
Best Opposite Spiker
Jovana Zelenović (SRB)
Best Libero
Manuela Ribechi (ITA)
Italy 3-2 Serbia
Serbia started off better in the match, taking an early lead right after the first referee whistle. Jovana Zelenovic and her teammates were performing better than their rivals, and deservedly opened in their favour. While equal in attack (10 winning spikes in the first set each team), Serbia did slightly better on the blocking (three to zero), while Italy let their own errors affect the game.
However, it was just the beginning of the match for Italy, as they weren’t ready to give up just yet. Coming back to the game, they reacted good in the second set, improving their performance on attack (15 to 12), and also making it more difficult for their opponents on the net (five blocks). Although it was “a cat and mouse game” in this set, the Italians were able to show resilience and tie back the match.
Inspired from the good result, they outperformed Serbia in the third set, gaining more power towards the end of it. As the set was unfolding, the teams were breathing down each others’ necks, but with Prinecss Atamah on the serve, and thanks to successful attacks by Lisa Eposito and a block by Nicole Modesti, took the leadership.
Serbia responded quickly in the fourth set, as four kill blocks made the difference (while Italy did not record any). The Italians also suffered from their own errors (seven), while the Serbs delivered an almost perfect performance with no mistakes (only one).
In the deciding, fifth set, the teams battled it out hard until the very last point. However, it was the Italian team who showed more precision to the detail, and claimed the title. One more block (three to two) and one ace were crucial for Italy’s win in this set.
Una Vajagic (SRB) and Julia Ituma (ITA) both finished as top scorers in the match, recording 21 points to their names each.
Dominika Giuliani"It was a very tough game, there were many moments when we thought we could not do it, that we would not be able to recover. It was a game full of ups and downs, and in the end the most determined team won. And we take home this much-deserved gold.
Player of Italy
Nausica Acciarri"It was a very hard match, fought to the last point, but we are very happy for this victory. In the last set, we played point for point, but I always trusted in my team, and I was sure we could win. We did it, after so problems. It was difficult, but we did really well. "
Player of Italy
The Netherlands 1-3 Poland
Poland entered the match as the clear favourite. Aiming at finishing with the bronze, the players under the guidance of Wieslaw Popik did their job right in the first set, when after the 7th point, took control over what was happening on the court and never looked back. With as many as 15 winning spikes (to six) and four kill blocks (to one), they opened the match in their favour.
The second set was a very hard-fought one, as the Dutch team gave it their all in attempts to tie back the score. To the delight of their fans, following the game, they showed motivation, and emerged victorious from a set, full of turnarounds. While Poland were still dominating on attack in this part (16 to 14), the Dutch did slightly better on the blocking (five to three), and seized all their chances on their opponents’ errors (five).
However, this was all that the Netherlands could take from the game. In another thrilling set, and a new play of nerves, this time around, the Poles showed power (four kill blocks to one) and 18 winning spikes to 13, took the set lead.
Poland were leading throughout the most of the fourth set, however, the Netherlands did try their best, delivering good play on the net. On the other hand, too many own errors affected their performance (10 in this set), while the Polish team counted on Natalia Bandurska in the last minutes, as she did not disappoint and helped her teammates win the medal.
Olga Musial with 22 points finished as top scorer of the game. For the Netherlands, Marije Ten Brinke was above all with 17 points.