The captain of the Bulgarian national team, Alex Grozdanov, received an excellent gift for his 28th birthday. His team, Bogdanka LUK Lublin, started with a success in the quarterfinal playoffs of the Polish PlusLiga, after defeating Skra Bełchatów at home with 3:0 (25:23, 25:22, 25:22) in the first match of the series.
However, the match was by no means easy for the hosts. The guests from Bełchatów showed potential and even led at times, but errors in key situations prevented them from taking at least one set. Bogdanka's players had to make several mini-comebacks to achieve the valuable success and take the lead in the series.
The most impressive comeback came in the first set, where Skra even led 20:17 after an ace by Alen Souza. Bogdanka managed to equalize, and at 23:23, Canadian middle blocker Finian McCarthy took responsibility at the crucial moment and ended the set with two consecutive aces for 25:23, giving a psychological advantage to the team from Lublin.
In the second set, Bełchatów also had their opportunities and even led, but made inaccuracies in the decisive rallies. At the same time, Mateusz Malinowski and Wilfredo León were uncompromising in attack and serve, which secured an advantage for the champions.
The third set also started evenly, with Skra leading 14:11 and later 19:17. This time too, however, there was a collapse in the decisive moments
– errors in attack and inaccuracies in organization allowed Bogdanka to turn the score around, and a block by Marcin Komenda at 21:20 proved to be a turning point.
Alex Grozdanov also made a solid contribution to the victory. The Bulgarian international finished the match with 6 points, a utility coefficient of +5, 2 successful blocks, and 44% attack efficiency.
The most effective scorer for the winners was star Wilfredo León with 13 points. Hilyr Eno added 12, and Mateusz Malinowski contributed 10 points. The award for Most Valuable Player (MVP) was earned by captain Marcin Komenda, who scored 2 points, including 1 block. An interesting moment occurred during the award ceremony when the setter came out together with the birthday boy, Grozdanov.
For Skra Bełchatów, Alen Souza was above all with 13 points. Bartłomiej Lemański finished with 12, and Daniel Chitigoi, son of former Bulgarian international Radostina Rangelova, finished with 10 points.
Team Statistics
| Category | Bogdanka LUK Lublin | Skra Bełchatów |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 4 | 3 |
| Positive Reception | 39% | 44% |
| Attacks (Points) | 43 | 37 |
| Blocks | 8 | 7 |
| Opponent Errors | 20 | 20 |
Bogdanka won the match primarily through more effective attack and a slightly stronger serve. Although Skra had better reception (44% against 39%), this did not translate into enough points in attack. The difference came from 6 more successful attacks and a slight advantage in blocks, which tilted the balance in favor of the hosts.
With this success, Bogdanka LUK Lublin took the first step towards qualifying for the semifinals, but the match showed that the series against Skra Bełchatów will be anything but easy.
photo:plusliga.pl
