Led by Roberts and Manassero, Mondovì clinched a superb victory against Castellana Grotte at the end of a very tight encounter that lasted over two hours and a quarter. After a poor display in the first set, Barisciani’s men took control of matters and went close to win it 3-1. However, a last minute spurt from Castellana postponed the celebration to the tie-break. A tie-break that started off horribly wrong for Mondovì, left far behind with a mountain to climb at 3-10. Then came a controversial decision which the visitors argued at length and a spectacular come-back began.
“We really needed a win like this – said coach Mauro Barisciani – It doesn’t happen very often to recover from such a difficult situation in the fifth set, everything seemed lost. They might have made the mistake of provoking us too much, and that might have awoken our will to win. I expected a difficult start for Roberts but from the second set on, he showed what he was all about. I am very happy for him”.
