Bulgarian outside hitter Aleksandar Nikolov continues to be among the brightest figures in the Italian SuperLega. In the third round of SuperLega Credem Banca, the star of Cucine Lube Civitanova was unstoppable – 29 points against Itas Trentino, 24 of which were in attack, and he was deservedly declared MVP of the match.
With this, Nikolov became the highest-scoring volleyball player of the round and simultaneously the top scorer of the championship with a total of 80 points and an average of 6.15 per set. Lube's 3:1 victory brought the team back into contention for the top spots, and the Bulgarian solidified his position as a key figure in coach Medei's squad.
⚡Historic serving performance by Oleh Plotnytskyi
Aside from Nikolov's performance, the third round will also be remembered for one of the most significant individual achievements in the history of Italian volleyball.
Ukrainian Oleh Plotnytskyi from Sir Susa Scai Perugia scored 10 aces in three sets in the 3:0 victory against Sonepar Padova – five of them consecutively in the first set.
Thus, Plotnytskyi recorded the third-best serving achievement in the history of SuperLega and Serie A1. Only Earvin Ngapeth (12 aces, 2017/18) and Mitja Gasparini (11 aces, 2011/12) are above him, who had more sets to increase their scores.
| Player | Ace | Total serves | Errors | Sets | Ace/Set |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earvin Ngapeth | 12 | 29 | 7 | 4 | 3,00 |
| Mitja Gasparini | 11 | 39 | 6 | 5 | 2,20 |
| Oleh Plotnytskyi | 10 | 19 | 2 | 3 | 3,33 |
| Nimir Abdel-Aziz | 10 | 24 | 1 | 3 | 3,33 |
| Todor Skrimov | 10 | 27 | 5 | 4 | 2,50 |
| Cristian Savani | 9 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 3,00 |
| Wilfredo León | 9 | 22 | 3 | 3 | 3,00 |
| Nimir Abdel-Aziz | 9 | 22 | 5 | 3 | 3,00 |
| Ramon Moya Gato | 9 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 2,25 |
| Matey Kaziyski | 9 | 24 | 6 | 5 | 1,80 |
Among the historical record holders, two Bulgarians also stand out
– Todor Skrimov (10 aces in 2015) and Matey Kaziyski (9 aces in a playoff match in 2008).
Skrimov, today part of Levski Sofia, remains one of the most effective servers in the history of Serie A1, and Kaziyski continues to be an example of consistency and class even after more than two decades in the Italian elite.
🕰️Historical retrospective – Lyubomir Ganev's achievements
Looking back, the Bulgarian influence on the history of Italian volleyball, and more specifically on serving records, is even deeper. In the early 90s, when games were played to 15 points and the so-called side-out system was applied (where a point is scored only on one's own serve), Lyubomir Ganev – today the president of the Bulgarian Volleyball Federation – became one of the strongest servers in Serie A1.
| Player | Ace | Errors | Total serves | Match | Score | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lyubomir Ganev | 10 | 7 | 41 | Alpitour Cuneo – Sisley Treviso | 2-3 | 1992 |
| Lyubomir Ganev | 9 | 5 | 29 | Wuber Schio – Gioia del Colle | 3-1 | 1995 |
| Lyubomir Ganev | 8 | 6 | 23 | Ingram Città di Castello – Olio Venturi Spoleto | 0-3 | 1991 |
| Lyubomir Ganev | 8 | 5 | 30 | Aquater Brescia – Olio Venturi Spoleto | 3-1 | 1991 |
The system at the time did not allow every rally to score a point, so aces were not counted as direct points, but as won rallies from service. Nevertheless, the execution of 10 aces from 41 serves remains a mark of exceptional power and technique.
Ganev was among the pioneers who transformed Bulgarian volleyball into a respected factor on Italian courts, and his statistics today are part of the official archives of Serie A1.
