The Bulgarian national volleyball team for boys U16 defeated Romania 3:1 (25:14, 25:14, 26:28, 25:18) in a match from the European Championship qualifiers in this age group, which are taking place in Alanya, Turkey.

The class difference was evident from the very beginning. In the first two sets, the Bulgarians gave Romania no chance to feel comfortable and the lead grew continuously. The second part even started with seven consecutive points won for the "Lions".
Only the third set held real intrigue. The Romanians scored the first point, but Svetozar Ivanov's boys responded to make it 5:2. Subsequently, the northern neighbors took an 8:6 lead, and the first advantage for the Bulgarians came at 14:13.
Bulgaria made two aces after 16:16, but the ties continued to repeat until 26:26. The Romanians managed to win two consecutive rallies first and reduced their deficit in the sets, but the third was entirely under Bulgarian domination. The score quickly became 12:3, and later 19:8. Romania reduced their deficit to 18:22, but then it all ended. Three consecutive points for Bulgaria also meant victory at the start of the qualification.
The most effective player for the "Lions" was Ivaylo Kolev with 21 points, including two blocks and three aces. Krastin Ilov added 15 points with three blocks and four service aces, and Deyan Angelov finished with 14 points, 13 of which were in attack and one ace.
The next match for Svetozar Ivanov's team is against Serbia on Thursday at 2:30 PM. The European Championship will be held from July 27 to August 3 in Armenia.