IBK Altos thrashes GS Caltex 25 in five-set thriller – Women’s Volleyball

Karina Ocasio-Malpica lost the personal scoring duel with Bethania De la Cruz but at the end of the day the Puerto Rican stellar player got the last laugh as IBK Altos defeated GS Caltex 25-18, 25-18, 15-25, 22-25, 15-9 in the third match of the Korean Women’s League Final Series on Monday.

The outside hitter Ocasio-Malpica scored 47 points as IBK Altos moved one victory away from the 2013-2014 despite a 50-point performance from De la Cruz a native of the Dominican Republic.

Ocasio-Malpica now has 99 points (29, 23, 24) to 112 by De la Cruz (42, 20, 50) in three matches as the two big-cannons continue to delight the Korean fans with their thundering offensive exploits.

It was the second victory for IBK Altos in the best-of-five final series with the next match scheduled on April 2 also in Pyeongtaek a city to the south of Seoul.  GS Caltex won the first contest also in five sets.

After winning the first two sets by comfortable margin, the team based in Hwaseong faced a strong reaction from the other side of the net as GS Caltex evened up the score with the powerful attacks by De la Cruz leading the way.

The visiting team then controlled the tie-breaker from start to finish with good blocking and better concentration.

Talita Antunes gears up before the start of World Tour – Beach Volleyball

Talita Antunes, one half of the current FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour champion team, has added another title to her collection just over a month until the start of the 2014 World Tour.

Having already won the South American Games title with her World Tour sidekick Taiana Lima earlier in March, Talita added Brazil’s Queen of the Beach crown on Sunday.

She teamed up with Maria Antonelli at Ipanema Beach in Rio de Janeiro to defeat Maria-Clara Salgado and Agatha Bednarczuk to win 2-0 (21-11, 21-17) and equal Sandra Pires’ record of three Queen of the Beach titles.

“I am delighted to have matched Sandra’s record because she is one of the greats, an Olympic champion and I know how much she means to Brazil,” Talita said.

Talita and Maria Antonelli were previously partners on the World Tour from 2009 until 2012, though they teamed up for one last time to win gold at the FIVB World Cup finals in 2013.

“She was brilliant yesterday and remained bright today,” Maria Antonelli said. “It certainly helped as we didn’t need to think much about what we had to do and so we could relax and had less pressure on us.”

Brazilian Molico Osasco receives Women's Club World Championship wild card

The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and the organizers of the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship Zurich 2014 have announced that the first of two wild cards for the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship Zurich 2014 has been allocated to Molico Osasco of Brazil.

The 2014 South America Women’s Club Championship runner’s up are currently in the semifinals of the Brazilian SuperLiga and join hosts Volero Zurich, 2014 South America Women’s Club Championship champions Sesi-SP and European club champions Dinamo Kazan as the teams who have already qualified for the tournament which will take place from May 7 to 11.

Molico Osasco, who claimed the 2012 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship title, boast plenty of Brazilian internationals including Sheilla as captain, Adenizia, Thaisa, Fabiola, Jaqueline and Camila while Italian wing spiker Caterina Bosetti is also in their line-up.

The four time winners of the South America Women’s Club Championship from 2009 to 2012 have qualified for the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship three times having previously finished third in 2011 and second in 2010.

The wild card decisions are made jointly between the FIVB and the organizers with the second wild card expected to be allocated in the coming weeks.

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The eighth edition of the FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship will be held in Zurich, Switzerland and will feature six teams with the winner of the Asian Club Championship, which will take place from April 17 to 25 in Nakhonpathom, Thailand and one more wild card completing the line-up.  

Zarechie downs Besiktas to claim the first ever European trophy – Women’s Volleyball

Zarechie ODINTSOVO is the winner of the 2014 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup - Women.  The Russian team defeated Turkey’s Besiktas ISTANBUL by 3:1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-23, 25-19) in the second leg of the final at the Burhan Felek volleyball hall by the Bosporus to triumph with its first ever European trophy.

Natalia Malykh contributed 24 points to the victory and became the best scorer of the match.  She was also crowned as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final.

Anastasia Bavykina added 17 points to Zarechie’s tally, including 3 aces and 5 kill blocks.  Besiktas’s top scorer was Paula Yamila Nizetich with 22 points.

The first set was very competitive through 9-9.  Then the Russians started gaining in the score opening a gap as wide as 17-12.  In the conclusive moments of the set, the home side crawled back up to save all of Zarechie’s set points, but the last one, and to lose by a narrow 23-25.

The second set was similar, but with the opposite sign.  Besiktas used the momentum from the end of the first part and the great performance by its blockers to establish a solid domination on the court and shoot up to a 13-3 lead.  At 23-15, it seemed that nothing could stop the Turks from winning the set, but the Russian blockers were not sleeping either.  Zarechie scored 6 points in a row to prompt an interesting ending, and then it saved the first two of Besiktas’s three set points before letting it go by the same score - 23-25.

In the third set, it was once again Zarechie’s turn to control the scoreboard.  The advantage of the Russian team never exceeded 3 points, but also Besiktas was never able to take the lead.  The home side played very well in offense and continued its great blocking efforts, but also committed far too many unforced errors.  Fair enough, the set ended at another 25-23, this time in Zarechie’s favor.

The fourth set was a completely different affair.  The visiting team made the final push for the victory and imposed its will on the court.  Vadim Pankov’s players were completely focused on their game and put a lot of precision into their performance.  The blockers continued to be Zarechie’s main weapon and all this combined led to a total control of the set and the final score of 25-19 that marked the historic moment for the club and got the Russian celebration started.

 “I am very happy right now,” emotional Ekaterina Kosianenko, captain of Zarechie, said after the match.  “My girls managed to win the match.  Congratulations to us all!  I want to present this cup to all Russian people. They are in my heart.”

Vadim Pankov, head coach of Zarechie, added:  “It was a very difficult match as I had said it would be.  Besiktas has a very good defense.  It is normal that this was a difficult match - it is final.  I am very happy to become the holder of the Challenge Cup. Congratulations to my team!”

FAP seized ninth position at the Men's African Club Championship – Volleyball News

Cameroon's FAP completed in 9th place in the ranking matches at the 2014 Men's African Club Championship after their victory against Kenya Prisons at Sousse Olympic Hall in Tunisia on Friday. 

FAP won the match in straight sets (25-14, 25-21, 25-21) to finish ninth, leaving the Kenyans in 10th place.

Ettihad Misurata (LIB) fought for more than two hours to clinch 11th place in a thrilling win against GSU (KEN) 3-2 (25-22, 26-24, 15-25, 22-25, 15-13).

Ittihad Tangier (MOR) cruised past Bafia (CMR) 3-0 (26-24, 25-21, 25-19) for 13th position, while Port Douala (CMR) clinched 15th place following an exciting victory over Espoire (COD) 3-2 (19-25, 18-25, 25-17, 25-23, 15-10).

Nemo Stars (UGA) defeated Beau Vallon (SEY) 3-1 (18-25, 25-16, 25-19, 25-20) to finish in 17th place, while Autoridade (MOZ) beat Nahda (SUD) 3-2 (15-25, 26-24, 25-16, 23-25, 15-10) to end the competition in 19th place, leaving the Sudanese in 20th place. Mugher Cement (ETH) were bottom at 21st. 

Final Standings

1.         TBD

2.         TBD

3.         TBD

4.         TBD

5.         TBD

6.         TBD

7.         TBD

8.         TBD

9.         FAP (Cameroon)

10.       Prisons (Kenya)

11.       Ettihad Misurata (Libya)

12.       GSU (Kenya)

13.       Ittihad Tangier (Morocco)

14.       Bafia (Cameroon)

15.       Port Douala (Cameroon)

16.       Espoire (Congo DR)

17.       Nemo Stars (Uganda)

18.       Beau Vallon (Seychelles)

19.       Auroridade (Mozambique)

20.       Nahda (Sudan)

21.       Mugher Cement (Ethiopia)

Finals programme for rankings 1-8 on March 29, 2014                                                                                                        

7-8  Ahly Tripoli (LIB) v AHLY Benighazi (LIB)                     

5-6 Stif (ALG) v          Borj B (ALG)  

3-4 Etoile (TUN) v Sfax (TUN)                      

1-2 Esperance (TUN) v Ahly (EGY)  

Joint Coaches Course takes place at Argentina and Uruguay – Volleyball News

The FIVB-FeVA Argentine Volleyball Regional Development Centre (CDRV) is hosting the first International Level 1 Coaches Course of 2014 organized jointly by the Argentine Volleyball Federation (FeVA) and the Uruguayan Volleyball Federation (FUV). 

The course is being held under the guidance of Ruben Sainz Rodriguez of Cuba and Spain’s Aurelio Ureña Espa.

This first activity of the year is part of a wide program of training aimed at developing volleyball across the southern part of the South American continent.

The course started on March 20 and will feature theory-based training classes carried out by both lecturers until March 31.

Mercury shines in Istanbul as Fenerbahce reaches out for CEV Cup

A thrilling volleyball fete planned for this afternoon at the Burhan Felek volleyball hall will conclude with the crucial final match of the 2014 CEV Volleyball Cup - Women.  Shortly after the end of the awarding ceremony to follow the 2014 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup - Men final featuring Fenerbahçe Grundig ISTANBUL and Andreoli LATINA, the women’s volleyball team of the Turkish multi-sport powerhouse – Fenerbahce SK. ISTANBUL, will round off a memorable day for the fans in yellow and black by facing the Russian Uralochka-NTMK EKATERINBURG in a battle for Europe’s second-ranked club competition. 

The excitement by the Bosporus is certainly reaching record levels, as a third team from the Turkish megalopolis – Besiktas ISTANBUL, will also play a European final this weekend, entertaining Russia’s Zarechie ODINTSOVO in a duel for the 2014 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup - Women, on Sunday afternoon at the very same Burhan Felek.

Fenerbahce’s Italian head coach Marcello Abbondanza shares the growing emotions: “There is a very important game waiting for us and we are very excited about it. We want to win and celebrate the trophy with our fans,” he stated.

“In the away match we got to know Uralochka and we are aware that if we block well in the second match at home, we can have an easier win that in the first game,” Captain Seda Tokatlioglu added.  “As I know, all tickets have been sold out and 7,000 supporters will come to cheer us on in our quest for the CEV Cup.”

Fenerbahce won the first leg in Ekaterinburg by a narrow 3:2, a result which sets the stage for a very tough fight in the second leg today.  The starting time of the game is at 20:00 local (19:00 CET).

Atom Trefl swings back to Ergo Arena for Polish league semis – Volleyball News

This weekend Atom Trefl SOPOT is going to play the first couple of matches with Impel WROCLAW in Poland’s national league semifinals. In the other semifinal, KPS Chemik POLICE will meet Tauron Banimex MKS DABROWA GORNICZA.

“The key to success is to fight for each point” says Anna Podolec, Atom’s opposite.  “We have to show our character and strength. There is no time for comprome.”

In the quarterfinals, Atom Trefl won 9:0 sets in the three matches with Beef Master Budowlani LODZ.  The team from Sopot gained some confidence by those victories and is ready to fight in the semis. 

“We started the games with Budowlani as the favorites, but this is not always an easy role for the players.  It is obviously nice, but you have to face the big pressure.  My girls got over that very well.  They won each match by 3:0 and it showed that we can keep our game on high level despite some ups and downs,” sums up Teun Buijs, the Dutch coach of Atom.

Nevertheless, Impel is a higher-ranked team than Budowlani and definitely a stronger one.  The team from Wroclaw, led by Norwegian coach Tore Aleksandersen, placed third in the Orlen League, so they took the place behind runner-up Atom Trefl trailing by only 4 points.

Atom’s middle-blocker Zuzanna Efimienko played in the past five consecutive seasons in Wroclaw and she realized how strong Aleksandersen’s team might be.

However it is hard to judge which team will be better on Saturday and Sunday afternoon in Sopot.  There is no common point between the two encounters of the two teams in the regular season. In the first away game, Atom lost by 0:3, but then they took the victory in straight sets at home.

The last time Atom Trefl played at Ergo Arena was against Romania’s Dinamo Romprest BUCURESTI in the main phase of 2014 CEV DenizBank Volleyball Champions League.  Because of some other events and mostly the 2014 IAAF Indoor World Championships, they were unable to play at their home hall for three months.

“I am glad to play again at our big hall and I was looking forward to come back here.  When we play in a facility like this, it is also good for our supporters.  I think that we can play better volleyball here as we will be more confident at this hall that we used to call our home,” stresses Charlotte Leys, Dutch wing-spiker of Atom.

The first couple of games will be held in Sopot this weekend, both starting at 14:45 local time.  Then the rivalry will be continued in Wroclaw on April 7 and, if necessary, April 8.  If the result is tied at 2 victories each, the decisive fifth match will be played in Sopot two days later.

USA Volleyball hosts the beach volleyball FIVB World Tour Grand Slam playoff – Beach Volleyball

USA Volleyball will hold its first ever playoffs for an FIVB World Tour Grand Slam beach affair on March 26 at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica, California.

Four US women’s and four men’s beach volleyball teams will contest in winners-take-all tournaments to compete for slots (one men’s and one women’s) as the United States’ fourth team in the FIVB Shanghai Jinshan Grand Slam  that will take place from April 29 to May 4 in China. 

Entry into FIVB Grand Slam events is based on points accumulated by both members of the team, which means the top three US teams in terms of points are entered automatically. The fourth team will be determined by the playoff, which is free and open to the public.

Automatic Grand Slam qualifiers for the women are April Ross/Kerri Walsh Jennings, Lauren Fendrick/Brooke Sweat along with Emily Day/Summer Ross. On the men’s side, Jake Gibb/Casey Patterson, Phil Dalhausser/ Sean Rosenthal along with Ryan Doherty/Nick Lucena are automatically entered.

Taking part in the  women’s play offs competition will be  Jennifer Fopma/Whitney Pavlik (No. 1), Brittany Hochevar/Lane Carico (No. 2), Heather Hughes/Christal Engle (No. 3) along with Sarah Day/ Allison Daley (No. 4).  The men’s competition will see Todd Rogers/Theo Brunner (No.1), Will Montgomery/Stafford Slick (No. 2), John Mayer/ Brad Keenan (No. 3) along with John Hyden/Tri Bourne (No. 4).

“We looked at doing this thing every which way,” said Sean Scott, technical manager for the USAV Beach National Teams. “We’ve exhausted every idea. We look at this as the best way to create opportunities for players. It’s up to the players to take that opportunity.”

The men’s first-round matches will begin at 10:00 followed by women’s at 11:00. The men’s final will begin at noon followed by the women’s at 13:00.

In the men’s first round Rogers/Brunner will play Hyden/Bourne while Montgomery/Slick will take on Mayer/Keenan. In the women’s first round, Fopma/Pavlik will play Day/Daley while Hochevar/Carico will take on Hughes/Engle.

The playoffs used to take place at the Grand Slam events themselves. In so-called “Country Quota” matches, teams from the same country would square off for the fourth slot in the tournament. However the FIVB eliminated Country Quota playoffs in 2013.

Due to logistics, USAV cannot hold playoffs for the FIVB Grand Slams following Shanghai. At that point, the U.S. team that is fourth in points will be entered. Teams can gain points at FIVB Open and NORCECA Circuit tournaments.

USAV also should get two wild card entries for the FIVB Grand Slam on July 22-27 in Long Beach, Calif., which will give five U.S. teams per gender a chance to gain points.

Men’s playoff competition

10:00: Todd Rogers/Theo Brunner vs.  John Hyden/Tri Bourne

10:00: Will Montgomery/Stafford Slick vs.  John Mayer/ Brad Keenan

12:00: Men’s final

Women’s playoff competition

11:00: Jennifer Fopma/Whitney Pavlik vs.  Sarah Day/Allison Daley

11:00: Brittany Hochevar/Lane Carico vs.  Heather Hughes/Christal Engle

13:00: Women’s final

Cochabamba, Bolivia hosts the South American Beach Volleyball Tour – Beach Volleyball

Bolivia provides the backdrop for a stop on beach volleyball’s South American Tour for the second week running this weekend. 

After last weekend’s stop in Sucre, this time the competition will be at the Olympic Club in the city of Cochabamba and will feature men’s and women’s pairs from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.

On Friday, March 28, the competition will get under way with pool matches that will continue into Saturday. Saturday afternoon will see both the quarterfinals and semifinals.

The tournament will climax on Sunday with the gold- and bronze-medal matches for both men and women.

Brazil leads the ranking of beach volleyball in 2014 for men and women. In the men’s category, Chile is second and Venezuela third. In the women's category, Brazil is followed by Argentina in second and Chile in third place.

Competitors:

Women:

ARG 1 - ANA MARIA GALLAY / GEORGINA KLUG

ARG 2 - JULIETA PUNTÍN / VIRGINIA ZONTA

BOL 1 - TANIA ISMAEL / MARIA LUISA ORTIZ

BOL 2 - AMALIA CALVO / DANIELA ARNEZ

BOL 3 - MARXIA REYES / DIVA OROPEZA

BOL 4 - KATHERINE URIARTE / ALEJANDRA OSSIO

BOL 5 - FERNANDA MAIDA / ADRIANA VILLARROEL

BRA 1- FERNANDA BERTI ALVES / ELIZE MAIA SECOMANDI

BRA2 - CAROLINA HORTA MAXIMO / CLAUDINERE BENTO SABINO

CHI 1 - MARIA FRANCESCA RIVAS / MARIA PILAR MARDONES

CHI 2 - MARIA JOSEFINA VÉLEZ / NATALIA DEL CARMEN DEPASSIER

COL - ANDREA GALINDO / CLAUDIA GALINDO

PAR - MICHELLE VALIENTE / GABRIELA FILIPPO

PER - MICHELLE SERNA / DIANA TORRES

URU - LIA FORTUNATI / FLORENCIA ROTTI

VEN - NORISBETH AGUDO / GABRIELA BRITO

Men:

ARG 1 - JULIAN AZAAD / PABLO BIANCHI

ARG 2 - NICOLAS CAPOGROSSO / IAN MEHAMED

BOL 1 - ROLANDO ISMAEL / RODRIGO PEREZ

BOL 2 - ISRAEL MARTÍNEZ / SERGIO FRANCO

BOL 3 - MAURICIO HEREDIA / LUIS BARRON

BOL 4 - LUIS CARLOS GARCÍA / SERGIO HAZOU

BRA 1 - MARCIO HENRIQUE BARROSO ARAUJO / THIAGO SANTOS BARBOSA

BRA 2 - HEVALDO SABINO MOREIRA /BRUNO MARCELO LIMA DE PAULO

CHI 1 - MARCO GRIMALT / ESTEBAN GRIMILY

CHI 2 - CRISTOBAL MARTINEZ / GUILLERMO JIMENEZ

COL - JULIAN CARMONA / JUAN CAMILO GIL

PAR - ELIOTH FRUTOS / CARLOS PEREZ

PER - LUIS BRAMONT ARIAS / JIMY HEREDIA

URU - RENZO CAIRUS / NICOLÁS ZANOTTA

VEN 1 - JESUS VILLAFAÑE / JACKSON HENRIQUEZ

VEN 2 - RONALD FAYOLA / LEONARD COLINA

The gold goes to Brazil and Chile in Sucre - South American Beach Volleyball

The fifth stop of the South American Beach Volleyball Tour enjoyed quite of sunshine as Brazilians Amanda Maltez/ Erica Almeida and Chilean cousins Marco and Esteban Grimalt managed to take away gold at the Garcilaso Sucre stadium.

Argentine’s Ana Gallay/ Georgina Klug settled for the women’s silver medal, whereas Brazilians Fabio Bastos/ Saymon Santos seized the men’s silver. The Colombian Galindo sisters, Andrea and Claudia, took home the women’s bronze while Jesus Villafañ/ Jackson Henriquez conquered the men’s.

Maltez/ Almeida, competing for the first time for Brazil, were not intimidated by the experience of Gallay and Klug, and ran out 2-1 (21-19, 19-21, 15-12) winners after a solid game and an undefeated run in the tournament.

"I'm speechless!” Maltez exclaimed. “It was a tense game, but we won our first international title. Hopefully others will come.”

Marco and Esteban Grimalt, who won on the previous stop in Lima, looked strong against Brazilians Fabio Bastos/ Saymon Santos and ended convincing winners, 21-9, 21-14.
“We were able to impose our rhythm,” Esteban Grimalt. “We put pressure on Fabio and were able to prevail. We are very happy with this title.”

Andrea/ Claudia Galindo beat Venezuelans Gabriela Brito/ Norisbeth Agudo 2-0 (21-16, 21-14) for the bronze, while Jesus Villafañe/ Igor Hernandez of Venezuela overcame Uruguay’s Nicolas Zanota/ Renzo Cairus 21-13, 21-17 in the men’s section.

The competition continues next weekend in another Bolivian city, Cochabamba.

Classification

Women
1 – Brazil
2 – Argentina
3 – Colombia
4 – Venezuela
5-8 – Uruguay, Bolivia 1, Chile 1, Paraguay
9-16 – Argentina 2, Bolivia 5, Chile 2, Bolivia 6, Bolivia 2, Bolivia 3, Bolivia 4, Bolivia 7

Men
1 – Chile
2 – Brazil
3 – Venezuela
4 – Uruguay
5-8 – Venezuela 2, Argentina 1, Bolivia 2, Bolivia 1
9-16 – Chile 2, Paraguay, Bolivia 6, Argentina 2, Bolivia 5, Colombia, Bolivia 3, Bolivia 4