Lokomotiv Novosibirsk recorded a hard-fought victory in their away match against the last-placed ASK Nizhny Novgorod.The hosts lost 2:3 (23:25, 25:23, 21:25, 26:24, 13:15) to Plamen Konstantinov's boys.The entire match was extremely competitive and tense, with the referee even having to resort to yellow cards. For the hosts, Greek setter Dmitry Filippov returned to the starting lineup after an injury. And coach Plamen Konstantinov started and kept diagonal Ilya Kazachenkov, who hasn't received much playing time this season, until the very end. Ilya Kazachenkov was the most productive player for the winners with 29 points (3 blocks, 2 aces).
Dmitry Lyzik added another 15 points, and Serbian Marko Ivović contributed 14. Yoandy Leal did not play.
Novosibirsk's Lokomotiv returned to the PARI Super League matches after the 'railwaymen' missed the sixteenth round (the return match with Shakhtyor Soligorsk, as the team withdrew from the championship). Plamen Konstantinov's team opened the second half of the season in Nizhny Novgorod, after which they will travel to Moscow, where a battle with Moscow's Dinamo will take place on December 20.
Before the start of the seventeenth round, the team from Nizhny Novgorod occupied the last place in the tournament table - the outsider had only one victory (they defeated MGSU away in four sets with 1:3 (22:25, 20:25, 25:22, 26:28)). With the point gained, Nizhny Novgorod moved off the bottom of the table and occupies the penultimate position, while Lokomotiv is third.
Plamen Konstantinov, head coach of VC "Lokomotiv" (Novosibirsk):
- We knew it wouldn't be easy, the atmosphere here is always such that matches don't just happen. We won the match and received not only a volleyball but also a psychological workout. Winning under psychological pressure is only a plus. Nothing happens without pressure, nothing is won without pressure. That's why we have to overcome problematic situations, to get back into the game despite everything, so I'm glad it turned out that way today.
photos:lokovolley.com
