Perugia, 12 January 2025

Sir Susa Vim Perugia-Itas Trentino 2-3, the match report

Report of the match. Itas Trentino on the court in Umbria for the top clash of the championship must still play without Kozamernik, which is why the coach, Fabio Soli, confirms the starting six during the final part of the match at the PalaPanini in Modena six days ago: Sbertoli as setter player, Gabi Garcia as opposite player, Michieletto and Lavia as hitter spikers, Bartha and Flavio as middle blockers and Laurenzano as libero. Sir Susa Vim Perugia responded with Giannelli as setter player, Ben Tara as opposite player, Plotnytskyi and Semeniuk on sides, Solé and Loser at centre, Colaci as libero.
The start was fast-paced, with both teams pushing well in the break point phase (2-0, 2-4 and 5-5), before Perugia stepped on the accelerator with Plotnytskyi (block on Gabi Garcia and excellent service) who signed the +3 points at the half and forced the Gialloblù to take refuge in a time out (9-12). On the restart, the hosts pushed hard again on the counterattack (9-14), before Sbertoli with two almost consecutive blocks on Semeniuk did not lift Trento up again (13-15). Sir Susa Vim, however, didn’t give up during the break point and recovered energetically (17-20 and 18-22) thanks to the effectiveness of its service. It was the decisive break, because the locals then held on to their advantage and closed quickly thanks to two points from newcomer Ishikawa (20-25). Itas Trentino tried to shake things up after switching the court with Bartha (first half and block) and Gabi Garcia (attack and ace), immediately taking advantage ahead 5-3. Perugia replied almost immediately with Ishikawa (6-6), but immediately afterwards Trento had another breakthrough with Michieletto and Lavia (10-7), forcing Lorenzetti to spend a time out. At the restart, Sir Safety Conad Perugia climbs back, finding parity at 14 again with Ishikawa; the yellow-blues do not back down and restart with Gabi Garcia's block on Plotnytskyi and Sbertoli's ace (17-14). The end of the set sees the guests reach 21-17, taking advantage of the errors made in succession at the net by newly entered Herrera Jaime; Soli's team holds on to their lead (23-20) and levels the match at 1-1 thanks to a net error from the Umbrian, this time by the Japanese player.
The contest becomes balanced again at the start of the third set (4-4 and 7-7), with Perugia reintroducing Ben Tara in the opposite role. Bartha scores the first lead with a quick attack (11-9), which Trento manages to hold onto until 13-11, before conceding a 0-6 run (13-16), highlighted by Ishikawa, Ben Tara, and Loser serving (also scoring with an ace). Sir Susa Vim gains further momentum with the Japanese player's serve (15-20) and easily takes a 2-1 lead in the match (18-25), partly due to the yellow-blue team's frustration and numerous errors that help the opponents.
After the court switch, Itas Trentino, with Rychlicki in the opposite role, recovers, keeping the score tight during the side-out phase (6-6 and 9-10). Perugia accelerates with Plotnytskyi (10-12), but Bela Bartha’s block holds firm, allowing the yellow-blue team to overtake (14-13, Lorenzetti calls a timeout). Michieletto serves two consecutive aces against Plotnytskyi, stretching the lead to +3 (16-13), which the yellow-blues defend until 19-16, then extend to +4 (20-16) with another attack from the left-handed outside hitter. In the final stages, Soli’s team seals the advantage (23-20) and earns the opportunity to play the fifth set, already leading 25-21 (Herrera Jaime's service error).
The tie-break is thrilling, with both teams fighting relentlessly (6-4, 8-7). Perugia builds a double advantage (11-13) but fails to capitalize as Trento starts saving match points in succession (14-14, 18-18). In the end, there will be ten unconverted match points for the Umbrians, who lose their starting left-side hitters to cramping. Trento also has to do without Sbertoli for the same reason. Acquarone enters, and at the first opportunity, Itas Trentino closes the match: Herrera Jaime sends a left-side attack out of bounds, 24-22, and the yellow-blues win!

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