Mission accomplished for Cucine Lube Civitanova, who secured a spot in the Challenge Cup final after winning the return leg against SK Ankara. The Italian powerhouse, who were convincing in the first match with a 3:0 victory, guaranteed their progression after just the first two sets of the return leg – 2:0 (25-19, 25-17).

From that point on, the match was merely played out. Towards the end of the game, coach Medei gave a chance to Alex Nikolov, who scored a point with a skillful drop shot in the center. Gabriele Gargillo put an end to the contest, and Lube triumphed with a 3:0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-16) victory.

The most effective player for the winners was Canadian international Eric Loeppky, who finished with 15 points (1 ace, 3 blocks). Shinenezze added 10, and Adis Lagumdzija concluded with 11. For the hosts, the only player with double-digit points was Edgar – 11 points.

In the final, Lube will face the winner of the other semifinal between Bogdanka LUK Lublin (Poland) and Sporting CP Lisbon (Portugal). The Polish team, led by coach Botti and with Wilfredo Leon and Alex Grozdanov in their squad, won the first match 3:0. The return leg is tomorrow in Poland.
The first leg of the final will be played on March 11, 12 or 13 with Lube as the away team, and the return leg is scheduled for March 19 at the Eurosuole Forum in Civitanova.