Pirin (Razlog) continued its historic series against the grand teams, after defeating CSKA following Levski, and the great hero was once again Zlatko Kyosev. Led by him and with a very strong match by Borislav Kyosev's nephew, the Razlog team snatched a dramatic 3:2 game victory, decided in an extremely tense tie-break.
The match went through serious twists and turns. CSKA took the lead after the first game, but Pirin responded emphatically in the second and third, with Kyosev and the middle blockers dominating in attack and on the block. "The Reds" brought back the intrigue with a convincing fourth game, and so everything was decided in the tie-break.
The fifth game offered real drama. Pirin pulled ahead 13:9 and seemed close to victory, but CSKA showed character and equalized at 14:14. Overtime followed, in which the two teams exchanged point for point. In the decisive moments, Zlatko Kyosev took responsibility in attack, and the block of the Razlog team proved crucial. After 18:16, Pirin closed the tie-break and the match, sealing one of their most valuable victories of the season.
Individual and team performance: the numbers behind the drama in Razlog
Pirin's victory over CSKA in this epic five-game clash has a very clearly expressed statistical face, which shows why the Razlog team emerged as ultimate winners.
Individual statistics – key scorers
| Team | Player | Points | Blocks | Attack efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pirin | Teodor Kamenow | 24 | 3 | 46% |
| Pirin | Zlatko Kyosev | 18 | - | - |
| Pirin | Konstantin Kozelov | 13 | - | - |
| CSKA | Spas Bayrev | 25 | - | - |
| CSKA | Mohammad Reza Beik | 16 | - | - |
| CSKA | Nikolay Penchev | 13 | - | - |
| CSKA | Teodor Todorov | 12 | - | - |
Teodor Kamenova had his strongest match with the Pirin team - 24 points, 3 blocks and an impressive 46% in attack, being a factor in all key moments, including the tie-break. Zlatko Kyosev once again showed leadership with 18 points and decisive interventions at the end. For CSKA, Spas Bayrev was the main engine with 25 points, but even his scoring was not enough.
Team statistics
| Statistic | Pirin | CSKA |
|---|---|---|
| Blocks | 19 | 12 |
| Attack efficiency | 50% | 48% |
| Aces | 0 | 8 |
| Points from opponent's errors | 25 | 25 |
The block proved to be the decisive element in Pirin's favor – a total of 19 successful blocks against 12 for CSKA, which weighed particularly heavily in the tie-break. In attack, Pirin was slightly more effective, and although "the Reds" had a significant advantage in serving with 8 aces, this did not compensate for their problems against the hosts' organized defense and block. The equal number of points from opponent's errors shows that the difference came precisely from play at the net and coolness in decisive moments.
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