The team of Fenerbahçe Medicana, led by Marcello Abbondanza, who is also the head coach of the Bulgarian women's national team, achieved a dramatic away victory against Göztepe in a match from the 25th round of the Turkish Vodafone Sultanlar Ligi.

In an extremely competitive match, played at the 'Izmir Atatürk Volleyball' hall, the Istanbul giant secured a 3:2(20:25, 25:19, 22:25, 25:23, 15:11) victory after a five-set battle.

This was the team's 21st victory in the championship, with which Fenerbahçe Medicana secured second place in the regular season standings.

Fedorovtseva shone again

The top scorer in the match was Arina Fedorovtseva, who scored 34 points and played a key role in the decisive moments of the encounter.

Significant contributions to Marcello Abbondanza's team's success also came from Yasmin Bedart-Ghani with 12 points and Aslı Kalaç with 11, while Hande Baladın, Melissa Vargas, and Agnieszka Korneluk each added 8 points.

For the hosts Göztepe, the top scorer was Sheridan Atkinson with 25 points, followed by Ezgi Bektaş with 19 and Kara Bajema with 17.

Dramatic match progression

The hosts started better and took the first set 25:20, after controlling the flow of the game in the decisive rallies.

Fenerbahçe reacted in the second set, when Hande Baladın and Yasmin Bedart-Ghani led the attack for the visitors, who equalized after a 25:19 score.

The third set developed evenly until 17:17, but in the decisive moments, Göztepe applied pressure and closed the set 25:22, to take a 2:1 lead.

Marcello Abbondanza's team showed character in the fourth set. Strong play from Korneluk on the block and Fedorovtseva in attack allowed Fenerbahçe to equalize after a 25:23 score.

In the tie-break, Fedorovtseva's class tipped the scales. The Russian led her team in the decisive rallies, and Fenerbahçe closed the set 15:11, making the final score 3:2.

Next: Champions League

After the dramatic victory in the championship, Fenerbahçe Medicana turns its attention to the Champions League quarterfinals.

On March 11, Marcello Abbondanza's team will visit the Italian Savino Del Bene Scandicci in the first match of the tournament's knockout phase.