Challenge playoffs, first semi-final:
EXPRIVIA MOLFETTA – LPR PIACENZA 1-3 (21-25, 25-20, 21-25, 15-25)
EXPRIVIA MOLFETTA – LPR PIACENZA 1-3 (21-25, 25-20, 21-25, 15-25)
EXPRIVIA MOLFETTA: Candellaro 9, Del Vecchio, De Barros Ferreira 14, Barone 6, Mustedanovic 1, De Pandis (L), Hierrezuelo 5, Fedrizzi 10, Hernandez Ramos 13. DNP Kaczynski, Spadavecchia, Randazzo, Mariella, Porcelli. Coach. Di Pinto.
LPR PIACENZA: Coscione 4, Kohut 7, Ter Horst 21, Perrin 19, Papi (L), Sedlacek, Patriarca, Zlatanov, Luburic 11, Tencati 7, Cottarelli 1. DNP Manià, Tavares Rodrigues. Coach. Giuliani.
In the first Challenge Playoffs semi-final in Verona, Piacenza had the better of the favourite Molfetta. Molfetta had come out of the league playoffs quarter-finals, while Piacenza was dead last of the regular season before finishing second of the Challenge preliminary group stage. Molfetta never played loose, they never played with that fearless attitude that had characterised them all season, even against the best teams. On the other hand, Giuliani’s men worked hard, they were disciplined and courageous. They will play for a place in Europe on Sunday.
Luca Tencati (LPR Piacenza): “We are delighted, we played very well, we all wanted this final and we did it. Molfetta is a tough opposition, they might not have been at their best physically but they did their part. They’re difficult to beat. More organised at the net? I’m not sure, I think we were making an awful lot of mistakes in every area of the game in regular season, there was not just one problem. We hoped a couple of wins could get us going and that’s what happened. We needed it, we have really improved as a team. Now we’ll focus on Sunday’s game but we’re happy we made that first step”.
Vincenzo Di Pinto (coach Exprivia Molfetta): “We should always play with a good attitude, and we did not do that today. We have been having problems ever since the Trento games, but I don’t like to make excuses. We should never lose like that. My regret is to end such a great year with a game that has nothing to do with what we had done all season long”.
Challenge Playoffs Final Four
Semi-finals
Friday 22 April at 8.30pm
Calzedonia Verona – Ninfa Latina Live on Lega Volley Channel
Final
Sunday 24 April at 6pm
