Elitsa Vasileva-Atanasijevic played a strong match and made a key contribution to Panionios' dramatic 3:2 (25:20, 18:25, 19:25, 25:14, 15:5) victory over Olympiacos in the derby of the third round of the Greek Women's Volley League.
The Bulgarian outside hitter finished with 20 points, including an impressive 5 blocks, and Panionios maintained their perfect record since the start of the championship after a comeback from 1:2 sets.
The match also offered a Bulgarian clash on both sides of the net, as middle blocker Maria Krivoshiyska played for Olympiacos.
Vasileva shone in both blocking and reception.
Elitsa scored 15 of 32 attacks (47% success rate), adding 5 points from blocks. The Bulgarian was also stable in reception with 65% positive and 35% excellent reception.
More effective than her for the winners was only Milana Kubura with 22 points, of which 19 were from attack, one ace, and two blocks.
For Olympiacos, Maria Krivoshiyska finished with 6 points - 4 from attack, one ace, and one block. The Bulgarian middle blocker scored 4 of 11 attacks (36%).
The most effective player for the visitors was opposite hitter Merit Benister with 21 points, followed by Mihaela Mlejnkova with 14 and Marina Konstantinou with 13.
From 1:2 sets to a crushing 15:5 in the tie-break.
Panionios started the match better and won the first set 25:20, but Olympiacos responded with strong serving and turned the tide after 25:18 and 25:19.
In the fourth set, the hosts, led by Yunus Ocal, changed the balance of power. Panionios took an 8:3 lead, extended their advantage to 16:9, and equalized after a decisive 25:14.
The real blow, however, came in the decisive tie-break. The hosts started with 3:0, and after an ace by Di Iulio and successful actions by Kubura and Zakchaiou, the lead reached a crushing 10:1.
At 11:4, Vasileva-Atanasijevic made a block, and a little later, it was the Bulgarian who ended the match for a final 15:5.
Thus, Panionios secured their third consecutive victory in the championship and inflicted Olympiacos' first defeat.
Blocking proved decisive.
The winners finished with 10 points from blocks against 7 for Olympiacos, with half of them coming from Elitsa Vasileva.
Panionios also had an advantage in attack - 56 against 50 points, although the visitors scored more aces - 9 against 5.
The difference in unforced errors also proved crucial. Panionios received 31 points from opponent's inaccuracies, while Olympiacos won 23 in the same way.
After this success, Vasileva-Atanasijevic's team continues undefeated in the Greek elite, and the Bulgarian reinforced her important role in the Panionios squad.