SuperLega UnipolSai
Round 24
Exciting weekend ahead with no less than the first place at stake in the clash between Modena and Trentino on Saturday night. More interesting games on Sunday while Verona rests.
SuperLega UnipolSai round 24
Saturday March 21 at 5.30pm
Parmareggio Modena – Energy T.I. Diatec Trentino Live on RAI Sport 1
Live on streaming on www.raisport.rai.it
(Saltalippi-Cipolla)
Sunday March 22 at 5pm
Exprivia Neldiritto Molfetta – CMC Ravenna Live on RAI Sport 1
Live streaming su www.raisport.rai.it
(Rapisarda-Puecher)
Sunday March 22 at 6pm
Top Volley Latina – Cucine Lube Banca Marche Treia Live on Lega Volley Channel
(Gnani-Tanasi)
Vero Volley Monza – Sir Safety Perugia Live on Lega Volley Channel
(Pol-Braico)
Copra Piacenza – Tonazzo Padova Live on Lega Volley Channel
(Cappello-La Micela)
Altotevere Città di Castello-Sansepolcro – Revivre Milano Live on Lega Volley Channel
(Frapiccini-Sampaolo)
Rested: Calzedonia Verona
League table
Parmareggio Modena 54, Energy T.I. Diatec Trentino 53, Cucine Lube Banca Marche Treia 51, Calzedonia Verona 44, Sir Safety Perugia 42, Top Volley Latina 38, CMC Ravenna 31, Exprivia Neldiritto Molfetta 29, Copra Piacenza 22, Vero Volley Monza 20, Tonazzo Padova 12, Altotevere Città di Castello-Sansepolcro 10, Revivre Milano 8.
1 more game: Calzedonia Verona, Top Volley Latina, CMC Ravenna
Parmareggio Modena – Energy T.I. Diatec Trentino
Modena’s defeat last week means the first place is up for grabs again. Trentino closed the gap to one point and will have a chance to go top. A tie-break would advantage Treia, currently third. And there is Treia versus Modena in the last round. In the first meeting, Trentino had inflicted Modena its first defeat of the season but Modena took revenge in the Italian Cup final.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 49 (29-20 Trento)
Angelo Lorenzetti (coach Parmareggio Modena): “This is one of those games in which the players don’t need to be motivated. Stoytchev’s team is well-organised, they have experience, and they’re used to those big games. We’ll have to play our best volleyball like we’ve done so many times this season. We know how strong we are, we know our qualities and flaws. We have worked well during the week, I am satisfied. Now time for the game, may the best win”.
Emanuele Birarelli (Energy T.I. Diatec Trentino): “Modena Is a talented team, they have a positive spirit, it’s a team built to win. Hopefully we have learned something from the cup final defeat, especially mentally. We’ll need to be more composed and more positive on Saturday. In the last round, it’s all become much tighter between the top three. It’s great to still have a chance to win the regular season but at the same time, we have to look over our shoulders because Treia is just two points behind”.
Exprivia Neldiritto Molfetta – CMC Ravenna
Both clubs are very close from securing a playoff spot but they need those points to make absolutely sure of leaving Piacenza behind. A win would do it for either club, while a tie-break win would be enough for Molfetta.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 3 (2-1 Molfetta)
Maurice Armando Torres (Exprivia Neldiritto Molfetta): “Important game, we still need a couple of points to make sure we’ll be in the playoffs. Ravenna has been doing well, they proved it against Verona. They have quality players like Cebulj, Renan, a lefty outside hitter we’ll have to watch out for. There are experienced players like Bari, we’ll need our best to get the win. We’ll need to be effective on the serve, and be extremely focused from start to finish. We’ll need to face these last three games extremely carefully. It won’t be easy against Ravenna, and even less against Treia and Perugia. But we’ve been training well, we’re ready”.
Waldo Kantor (coach CMC Ravenna): “Crucial week with two big games. We’ve been doing well for sure, the team has made progress and must keep going like that. We know Molfetta is a strong team and very dangerous at home. We have to focus on ourselves and what the players have to do to get valuable points for the playoffs. Having a Challenge Cup game soon after has never bothered us thus far, I’m sure it won’t cause problems this time either”.
Top Volley Latina – Cucine Lube Banca Marche Treia
Latina is ready for another big one following their outstanding performance against the leader Modena. Blengini’s men have already secured sixth place and can have a shot at fifth. Having to rest in the last round, they will have only two chances to do so. They will therefore try to do as well as in the first meeting when they beat the Italian champs 3-1. As for Treia, they will play with their latest signing, Ricardinho. The fourty-year-old Brazilian setter will substitute the injured Baranowicz. Ricardinho last played in Italy in 2009-10 with Sabbi and Fei at Treviso. Giuliani’s men need three points at all cost to have a chance of finishing top of the table.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 34 (28-6 Treia)
Jeroen Rauwerdink (Top Volley Latina): “Another great battle for the playoffs. If we look at the table, they are third and we’re sixth, we’d meet them in the quarters. We have to keep focused, and play one game at a time. We try to get better in training, because we have things to learn, even if they’re little things. I am confident after the good performance against Modena”.
Marko Podrascanin (Cucine Lube Banca Marche Treia): “Here comes another crucial test after the win over Perugia. It won’t be easy to take three points in Latina, they’ve been firing on all cylinders, testimony the victory over Modena last Sunday. We’ll go after a ninth consecutive win in the SuperLega but to get it we’ll need to be at our best”.
Vero Volley Monza – Sir Safety Perugia
Monza will try to secure tenth place and maybe catch-up Piacenza for ninth. Vacondio’s men took 14 points in the return games compared to the only 6 in the first half of season. Perugia needs a win to move above Verona, who will be rested this weekend.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 5 (3-2 Perugia)
Francesco Cattaneo (Ass.coach Vero Volley Monza): “Perugia is an excellent team. They have a fantastic roster with players like Fromm and Atanasijevic. We’ve done well and have the momentum even if we can’t get in the playoffs. We’ve obtained a lot of good results in this second half of season, like the derby win over Milan last week. This is our first season in the SuperLega, we wanted to do well, and I think our goal remains to finish as close to the top 8 as possible. I remember well the first meeting with Perugia, we had played a good game and gotten the confidence that helped us to go on a run in this second part of season. We had made it very hard for them in the first set but then faded in the fourth and tie-break. We’ll need to maintain a high rhythm this time and try to get something out of this game”.
Rocco Barone (Sir Safety Perugia): “This is a crucial game for us. After the defeat against Belchatow and Treia, we really want to get back to winning. Monza is not an easy opposition. We all remember the first match. But we need those three points to finish fourth. We did not have any midweek game so we’ve trained well and we’re physically fine. The two defeats have taken its toll on the spirit of the group. But this is part of the past, now there is Monza and we want to win. This is the only way to regained confidence before the final rush of the season”.
Copra Piacenza – Tonazzo Padova
Only a win will do for Piacenza to keep hoping for a playoff spot. And it might not be enough, depending on what will happen in Molfetta. Padova will try to maintain 11th place and not get caught by the last two teams.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 21 (15-6 Piacenza)
Marco Meoni (Copra Piacenza): “Extremely important game for us. Another final, if we win we might still have a chance to be in the playoffs. We’re not condemned yet, and as long as we’ll be in it, we’ll give everything we have. We have worked hard this week and made progress in our game. We’ll need to put that in practice on Sunday”.
Valerio Baldovin (coach Tonazzo Padova): “Tough game, like all the games, we keep meeting players who wrote the history of volleyball. They will want to take revenge on the first meeting, when we won at the tie-break but we’ll try to make it hard for them. We’ll need the fighting spirit we played with all season long and play with intensity”.
Altotevere Città di Castello-Sansepolcro – Revivre Milano
Nobody likes to finish bottom of the table. And the two clubs will fight to leave the other one behind. Milan is last right now, two points behind, and has yet to win a game in the second half of season.
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 1 (Milan)
Federico Tosi (Altotevere Città di Castello-Sansepolcro): “This won’t be an easy game to handle, especially psychologically. We’ll need to play our game, we all want to get back on the winning track. It will be important to start off aggressive, without waiting for them to take the initiatives”.
Marco Maranesi (coach Revivre Milano): “We have to win it at all cost. We can win it. The last game against Monza proves sometimes the final result is different from what the stats, numbers and logic would suggest. We were better than our opponent in every fundamentals but only took one point. We’ll need more composure on Sunday when we play the points that matter most. Castello is a team that had some problems in attack like us, but they serve very well, so we need to work on our reception, which is something we’re usually good at”.
Serie A2 UnipolSai
Round 22
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