Men's Volleyball, Cev Challenge Cup: Civitanova beats Ankara in the return match and flies to the final

Volleyball Europe still speaks Italian. Cucine Lube Civitanova earned the pass to the Challenge Cup final by beating SK Ankara with a double 3-0 in the semifinal. In the return match, the team from the Marche region arrived in Turkey strong from the three-set victory obtained at the Eurosuole Forum two weeks ago, thus replicating the result of the first leg and winning again in three sets (19-25, 17-25, 16-25). The star of the return match was Eric Loeppky, named MVP of the match and author of 15 points. Barthelemy Chinenyeze and Adis Lagumdzija also scored double figures, finishing with 10 and 11 points respectively.

A clear victory for Giampaolo Medei's men, who now await to know their opponent in the final: at 6 pm (local time) tomorrow, Wednesday 26 February, Bogdanka LK Lublin and Sporting CP Lisboa will take to the field, with the Poles strong from the 3-0 obtained in Portugal in the first leg. The first leg of the final will be played on 11, 12 or 13 March, away, while the return leg is set for 19 March, at the Eurosuole Forum. First, however, the last commitment of SuperLega Credem Banca, with Cucine Lube Civitanova who will face Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina at home, in the Marche derby that will close the Regular Season.

"The team performed very well, the boys started the match with the right attitude, making a match that could have become complicated easy," commented Giampaolo Medei, Lube coach, at the end of the match. "We made it an easy match for us. We really wanted to win and reach the final, now we'll all enjoy it together. This is a result to be proud of, but also an opportunity for the group to grow. Our athletes responded well to a long and demanding trip. We've been out for a week, since after the matches in Padua and Trento we didn't return to Civitanova, but we came to Turkey, making sure we were ready for a match that we really cared about."

SK Ankara (TUR)–Cucine Lube Civitanova 0-3 (19-25, 17-25, 16-25)SK Ankara (TUR): Kiyak, Avci 8, Edgar 11, Gokgoz 2, Erkan 3, Hatipoglu (L), Koc 1, Cengiz, Hidalgo Silva 3, Dur 2, Bulbul 1, Kaya, Magututia (L). Don't enter Karakoc. All. Ozbey. Cucine Lube Civitanova: Balaso (L), Boninfante 1, Bottolo 9, Chinenyeze 10, Gargiulo 2, Lagumdzija 11, Loeppky 15, Nikolov 1, Orduna, Podrascanin 6. Bisotto, Hossein Khanzadeh, Dirlic, Tenorio not entered. Medei Giampaolo. Referees: Byhlin, Simonovic. Notes: set duration 23′, 22′, 21′; total 66′. SK ANKARA (TUR): Wrong serves 11, Winners 1. CUCINE LUBE CIVITANOVA: Wrong serves 14, Winners 4.