The Italian Men’s League Playoffs are in full swing with Calzedonia Verona and Diatec Trentino fighting it out in their best of three series.
Trentino took the first match of the series in five sets before Verona turned around to complete the same feat in the second match. The win from Verona has now forced a third match to be played on March 24 to see which team will advance farther in the playoffs and whose season will conclude.
Verona’s Stefano Magrini had some unsettling thoughts following their first-round loss to Diatec, despite their second match turnaround.
“The dream of taking the title has vanished. I think we lost the first match playing the game below our quality and potential. There remains a bitter taste in the mouth following the win tonight as we had to opportunity to force a golden set but were unable to do so. The team needs to be supported and we will be here to do so. The third match of the playoffs must be played on pitch, like the match tonight, but we are going to Trentino and are confident of being able to do well.”
In both matches, Verona fought from behind. In the first one, they came up just short in the fifth set but were able to hold on to their momentum in the second match.
Scores
- Round 1 Score: Trentino def. Verona 3-2, (25-23, 25-17, 19-25, 24-26, 15-13)
- Round 2 Score: Verona def. Trentino 3-2, (25-23, 21-25, 23-25, 26-24, 15-13)
Trentino ended the 2017-18 season with an 18-8 record to sit in fourth place in the league while Verona sits just behind them in fifth place with the same overall record. The two teams could have a difficult task in the semifinals as the winner of their match will play the winner of the Sir Safety Conad Perugia/Bunge Ravenna match. Sir Safety is ranked #1 in the league while Ravenna is #8.
Leave a Reply