The Serie A3 promotion play-off will be decided on Sunday at 7.30pm. After the defeat in game 1, Volley Banca Macerata won the return match with a memorable comeback against Gabbiano Mantova; now the red and whites will play everything away, on the pitch of the “Marco Sguaitzer” Palasport. The morale of coach Castellano’s boys is high after the victory at the Banca Macerata Forum, Mantua will instead try to celebrate in front of their fans: all the elements are there for another hard-fought and spectacular match.
Central player Gabriele Sanfilippo talks about the crucial moment of game 2, when Volley Banca Macerata was two sets down, “We relived the entire season played up to that point. We had to do justice to what we had done in the Regular Season, deserving of winning the promotion play-off; we told ourselves to enjoy this final, to give everything to every ball and not throw away what we had built during the year. After winning the third set we understood that the comeback was possible; physically we were fine, it’s an aspect we worked a lot on during the season and it gave us the energy to fight until the end.” Another big help was given to you by a packed Banca Macerata Forum and 100 fans will also be with you in Mantua, “There was a nice atmosphere in Macerata, we are happy that our fans will also follow us away; we know that we will not be alone and they will make us feel their warmth. For Mantua it will still be an advantage to play at home but we are not afraid, we are used to away games, during the championship we played almost everywhere. By now the two teams know each other, I expect another very balanced match.” The emotional aspect could make the difference in such a tight match, “Both teams showed their strengths, I think it will be a point-to-point match and clarity at the end of the set could be decisive. We must always be aware of what brought us to this final, of what we have done and of the objective we have set ourselves: to bring Macerata back to Serie A2.”
Game 3 of the promotion play-off between Gabbiano Mantova and Volley Banca Macerata will be visible on Sunday live on the official YouTube channel of the Volley League, starting at 7.30 pm.