Castellana Grotte had the better of Segrate at the tie-break and qualified for the A2 playoff final. Segrate was stopped just one step from paradise, just 5 points from a final that seemed very close. The whole season was at stake in one tie-break, and the atmosphere in the gym was certainly not ideal with the Castellana fans amassed very close to the court making it almost impossible to play freely. And Segrate already had to regain its composure after some controversial referee decisions which gave the first set to the hosts: two terrible mistakes and a yellow card for protesting to Van Den Dries. Still, Segrate fought back and made it really hard for Castellana Grotte.
“We played like lions – said coach Eccheli – We proved for the first time in history we could win in Castellana Grotte. The refs robbed us twice in the first set and obviously the atmosphere was in favour of Castellana and we probably paid the price in the fifth set for the young age of some of our players who were a bit emotional”.
