The Bulgarian national U18 girls' team started their participation in the European qualification, which is taking place in the capital's 'Hristo Botev' hall, in an impressive way. Atanas Petrov's selection left no doubt about their superiority and convincingly defeated Sweden 3:0 (25:17, 25:10, 25:11) in their opening match of the tournament.
With this success, the young 'lionesses' added a full three points and topped the provisional standings after the first day of competition.
The next challenge for the Bulgarian team is on March 28, when they will face Romania. Their opponent started with a defeat, after losing to Greece 0:3 (19:25, 20:25, 11:25).
Control from the first to the last ball
The Bulgarians dictated the events throughout the entire match, allowing for some intrigue only in the first set. In the opening minutes, our team managed to pull ahead at 5:2 and 14:12, but the Swedes managed to restore equality. The decisive moment came during Darina Naneva's serve, whose run, including an ace, led to five consecutive points and a 21:15 lead. From then on, the set was closed without hesitation.
The serve the main weapon
In the next two sets, Bulgaria's superiority became even more palpable. The serve seriously rattled the opponent's reception and created conditions for categorical dominance.
In the second set, Vyara Ivanova set the rhythm right at the start with a strong serve that secured an 8:2 lead. In the concluding rallies, Kalina Veneva took the initiative from the service line, and Bulgaria's block completed the dominance
Sweden was left with only 10 points.
The third set unfolded in a similar scenario
an early lead of 14:6 and full control until the final 3:0.
Individual statistics
Captain Kalina Veneva was the top scorer with 14 points (1 block, 2 aces), while Edna Todorova added 13 points (2 aces) to the victory.
For Sweden's team, Stina Strandahl finished with 5 points.
Bulgaria showed solidity in all elements and signaled a strong performance in the tournament right from their first match.
photos:cev.eu
