Lithuania and Ukraine start #EuroVolleyU16W qualifier with sweet victories
News
On Friday, the teams representing Ukraine, Georgia, Bulgaria, and Lithuania started the second round of qualifiers – Pool D for this year’s #EuroVolleyU16W in Druskininkai, Lithuania. The home favourites secured their first victory against Georgia, while Ukraine delivered an impressive performance to come from behind in their matchup with Bulgaria.
The opening match of the event in Druskininkai lasted for five sets, where Bulgaria and Ukraine found themselves fighting hard for their first victory in the tournament. Team Ukraine showed remarkable fighting spirit and defeated Bulgaria 3-2 (21-25, 19-25, 25-18, 26-24, 16-14) after coming back from a two-set deficit. Although Bulgaria is a country known for their rich history in women’s Volleyball, the Ukrainian girls showed much resilience and eagerness to win.
The Bulgarians won the first two sets 25-21 and 25-19, but Ukraine left their heart out on the court. After showing class in defence and playing a smart offensive game, the Ukrainian team dramatically won the fourth set 26-24 and tied the overall score, so the match went to a fifth set.
In the decisive set, the Bulgarians had the advantage for most of the time. They led 13-9 and it seemed that victory was within their reach, but the Ukrainians managed to come back again, tied the score, and eventually secured a memorable victory.
Karolina Omelai scored 26 points for Ukraine, while Olena Domashivets, Kateryna Hrynko and Orysia Kishta each scored 14 times. Darina Ivanova (15 points), Andriana Goleva and Gabriela Pekova (14 apiece) stood out for Bulgaria.
The Lithuanian team coached by Gilbertas Kerpė defeated their Georgian opponents 3-1 (17-25, 25-8, 25-7, 25-7) and took the first step towards reaching their dream of advancing to the final stage of the U16 European Championship. The Lithuanian team, passionately supported by the home crowd, could not cope properly with the excitement at the beginning of the match and allowed the Georgian team to play their game. Therefore, the guests from Georgia won the first set 25-17. In the second set, Lithuania returned to the court with a completely different attitude. The hosts dominated the second, third and fourth sets. Neither a minute break nor substitutions changed the outcome of the match for Georgia and the Lithuanian team celebrated their first victory. Gerda Jatkonytė scored 12 points, Ela Vaitulionytė 11, Reda Tretjekovaitė 10, Gustė Preikšaitytė 9, Ugnė Dilytė and Rusnė Šimanskytė 8 each. Nutsa Lomidze was the most prolific player for the Georgian team with six points.
“We are happy that the championship has started. We have been waiting and preparing for it for a very long time. The wait was the hardest part. Maybe that was the main thing that caught us off guard today together with a lot of additional factors. It is normal for girls of this age to get lost at first - a lot of spectators, a lot of support, tense legs. But I know the skills of this team, I was sure that everything would be fine and we would come back into the game. It will be difficult to play – all teams are performing at a good level. The qualifier lasts three days - everyone comes maximally prepared to play for three days. So we are ready to have interesting but hard days,” said Lithuania coach Gilbertas Kerpė.
16 teams will participate in the finals of the U16 European Championship. The final stage will be held on July 2-13 in Tirana, Albania and Pristina, Kosovo.