Jastrzębski Węgiel managed to keep their chances of defending the Polish PlusLiga title alive after defeating Bogdanka LUK Lublin 3:1 (31-29, 15-25, 25-20, 25-22) as guests in the second semifinal playoff match. The match was played at "Globus" hall in Lublin.
The victory is extremely valuable for Jastrzębski Węgiel, especially after losing the first match at home. With this success, they tied the series at 1-1, meaning the finalist will be determined in a decisive third match in Jastrzębie-Zdrój.
The match in Lublin offered a lot of drama and comebacks. The first set was extremely close, with Jastrzębski managing to overcome a deficit and win a prolonged battle 31:29. In this set, however, the reigning champion suffered a serious blow when the libero of the Polish national team, Jakub Popiwczak, sustained a thigh injury and had to be replaced by 19-year-old Jakub Jurczyk.
The second set was dominated by the hosts from Lublin, led by the excellent performance of Wilfredo León. They won convincingly with a score of 25:15.
Despite the heavy loss in the second set and the injury to a key player, Jastrzębski Węgiel showed character and managed to recover. In the third and fourth sets, the visitors improved their play, especially in attack and block, led by players like Łukasz Kaczmarek, Tomasz Fornal, and Luciano Vicentin, as well as good setting by Benjamin Toniutti. They managed to control the flow of the game and win with scores of 25:20 and 25:22 respectively, setting the final result at 3:1.
In this key match, although the star of the hosts from Lublin, Wilfredo León, scored 20 points, and the captain of the Bulgarian national teamAlex Grozdanov distinguished himself with 10 points, including 5 blocks, their efforts were not enough for a victory. For the visitors from Jastrzębski Węgiel, the top scorers were Łukasz Kaczmarek and Tomasz Fornal, who finished the match with 18 points each, while Luciano Vicentin added 15.
Thus, the fate of qualification for the PlusLiga final will be decided in a third, final match between the two teams.
In the other semifinal pair, there will also be a decisive third match, after Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie defeated PGE Skra Bełchatów 3:2 in sets, tying the series at 1-1.
