Serie A1 TIM
Round 28
Vibo versus Modena will open up the 28th round on Saturday at 5pm. On Sunday at 6, Perugia entertains Piacenza, as jan Stokr will receive his MVP award for the month of February. Loreto will play host to Taranto with the obligation to take the three points in order to keep its hopes to stay up alive. Macerata travels to Cuneo, while the already relegated Pineto hosts the leaders Trento. Treviso will try to defend its third place in Monza, which has not lost for seven rounds. Verona heads to Forli. Already safe, Latina can enjoy its weekend of rest.
Round 28
Saturday 13 march at 5pm
Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia – Trenkwalder Modena – Live on Rai Sport Più
Live streaming on http://www.raisport.rai.it/dl/raisport/multimedia/diretta.html
(Ravallese-Cappello)
Sunday 14 march at 6pm
RPA-LuigiBacchi.it Perugia – CoprAtlantide Piacenza – Differed on Rai Sport Più from 9.20
diretta streaming su http://www.raisport.rai.it/dl/raisport/multimedia/diretta.html
(Ippoliti-Cesare)
Esse-ti Carilo Loreto – Prisma Taranto
(Boris-Rapisarda)
Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo – Lube Banca Marche Macerata
(Castagna-Braico)
Aran Cucine Abruzzo Pineto – Itas Diatec Trentino
(Gnani-Pol)
Acqua Paradiso Monza – Sisley Treviso
(Cerquoni-Balboni)
Yoga Forlì – Marmi Lanza Verona
(Sampaolo-Santi)
Andreoli Latina – RESTED
League table
Itas Diatec Trentino 63, Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo 57, Sisley Treviso 55, Trenkwalder Modena, Lube Banca Marche Macerata, CoprAtlantide Piacenza 51, Acqua Paradiso Monza 49, Marmi Lanza Verona 41, RPA-LuigiBacchi.it Perugia 33, Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia 30, Prisma Taranto 25, Andreoli Latina 23, Yoga Forlì 18, Esse-ti Carilo Loreto 14, Aran Cucine Abruzzo Pineto 6.
1 more game: CoprAtlantide Piacenza, Marmi Lanza Verona, Andreoli Latina
Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia – Trenkwalder Modena
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 9 (6-3 Modena)
Francesco Prestinenzi (Direttore Sportivo Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia): “If our team plays with the same will and determination seen against Cuneo, I’m sure we’ll have an interesting and thrilling game against Modena. Besides, in the first meeting in their gym, even if we had lost 3-0, we had played a tight game, you just have to look at the set scores, one ace or block made the difference. This year, Prandi’s team changed a lot, not only in the team but also in the staff, they must have got it right given the results they’re having”.
Mikko Esko (Trenkwalder Modena): “We’re facing three important games but we’ll focus on one at a time, as we always do. It will be a tough game in Vibo, we’ll have to be aggressive and concentrated right from the start. Our target is obviously to win and stay as high up the table as possible. And given that the playoffs are around the corner, we have to maintain a high rhythm and, if possible, improve our level of play”.
RPA-LuigiBacchi.it Perugia – CoprAtlantide Piacenza
PASST ENCOUNTERS: 28 (17-11 Piacenza)
Benedetto Rizzuto (RPA-LuigiBacchi.it Perugia): “We’ll try to win and get some points, even if the playoffs are very far. Anyway, Sunday’s game will be useful to prepare the Challenge Cup Final Four, which will take place in a month time”.
Marco Meoni (CoprAtlantide Piacenza): “This is a tough spell for us. Sunday’s game will be very important, we’ll need maximum determination, we need to find our best form again and get some points. On the other side of the net, the team will surely be more focused on the European Finals, but it will not be gifting anything away. It will play with its excellent technique. I will be at Lorenzetti’s disposal but he will be the one to decide when and how to use me”.
Esse-ti Carilo Loreto – Prisma Taranto
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 9 (6-3 Taranto)
Digao (Esse-ti Carilo Loreto): “It’s a crucial game as we’re fighting to stay up. We have worked very hard this week in order to be able to give a little something more and win the game. We’ll face a team that won’t have any pressure given that they will neither fight to stay up nor for the playoffs. This is why we’ll have to be very careful and focused. I have great faith in my team and I’m convinced we’ll play a good game on Sunday”.
Donald Suxho (Prisma Taranto): “This is a key game for them, they are playing to stay up and will be very tense given that they are forced to win. They will have more pressure than us. We have to be composed because we want to finish well, this is a question of pride and image of the club. We have had good performances against Modena and Macerata and I think we can do well again but with a different outcome”.
Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo – Lube Banca Marche Macerata
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 52 (27-25 Cuneo)
Marco Pistolesi (General Manager Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo): “The game against Macerata has become a classic of this league, because both teams have been at the top of the table for at least ten years. The name of our opponent alone forces us to have maximum respect and be extremely focused. They have overcome the disappointment of the Champions League exit and I’m sure they have what it takes to win the league. It will definitely be a special game with a big crowd”.
Dragan Stankovic (Lube Banca Marche Macerata): “Crucial game for our position in the table, as well as to understand where we stand just a few weeks away from the playoffs. We did well against Taranto last week, hopefully we’ll keep progressing in terms of level of play and consistency. It will be strange for me to face Nikola Grbic as opponent: we have been teammates many times in the national team, but it’s the first time I have him on the other side of the net in a league game, and an important one at that”.
Aran Cucine Abruzzo Pineto – Itas Diatec Trentino
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 3 (Trento won them all)
Riccardo Modica (Aran Cucine Abruzzo Pineto): “There are three games left and we’ll try to play as well as we can. We’ll face stronger teams technically like Trentino, Modena and one extremely motivated like Loreto. We’ll try to make it difficult for them, play with fighting spirit and determination like we have done against Cuneo last Sunday. We’ll give our best like we have always done this season, which is a credit to us as players and as a group”.
Renaud Herpe (Itas Diatec Trentino): “Given the situation in the league table, we have a lot to lose and not much to win. Pineto won’t have much pressure, they are already down, while we need three more points to reach our target: the first place in the regular season”.
Acqua Paradiso Monza – Sisley Treviso
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 1 (Treviso won it)
Mauro Berruto (Acqua Paradiso Monza): “Two of the most in-form teams of the league will meet on Sunday. We’ll try to play a good game and take some points like we always do. Besides, it would be nice to beat the record of attendance this season, which we have beaten two weeks ago against Macerata. As for the game, there is clearly one main mission: limit Ricardo, who is in my opinion the best setter in the world. I can’t wait, though, to see a game in the game, between our young Travica, who has a bright future, and Ricardinho, who has won everything there was to be won in this sport. What is even more important for our fans is that there is now an air of playoffs. We’ll play on Sunday, then Wednesday and Sunday again… The real battle is starting now”.
Giorgio De Togni (Sisley Treviso): “Monza is in good form, they have won many games of late and they stand just a few points behind us, so this will be an important top level game. They have a very united group, their game flows well in every fundamental, that’s why it’s so difficult to trouble them in their gym. We are in good form too, since the Italian cup we have been on track, proving that it had only been a short difficult spell. We have to keep playing like this, we’ll be facing tough games in this end of regular season, it will be important to gather as many points as possible to be as high up as possible in the league table before the playoffs. Monza will use the serve as its main weapon to make it difficult for Ricardo, our main man who usually makes the difference, but we are ready for this game in which reception will be key. This is why we played the friendly against Belchatow on Tuesday, a team that has fantastic servers on the jump. And apart from a couple of tests in the first set, the game has been very useful to prepare ourselves to the serves of our opponent this Sunday”.
Yoga Forlì – Marmi Lanza Verona
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 16 (9-7 Verona)
Giovanni Gavelli (Presidente Yoga Forlì): “The Verona game is the first of three finals, we need to give our all in those three games. The players understood immediately how important it is for our city to reach such a special, important target. I can see there is the right attitude and the desire to make it. We’ll fight on every point”.
Daniele Sottile (Marmi Lanza Verona): “We are mathematically two points away from securing our place in the playoffs. We’ll try to get them in Forli, we also want to improve our game. They need points to stay up and they have excellent players who Verona knows well, like Maric and Popp. But we’ll face this game with only one thing in mind and the right motivation”.
Serie A2 TIM
Round 27
The A2 doesn’t stop one second. There are more games to come after the midweek action. The first game of the 27th round will be Sora vs Gioia del Colle on Saturday. On Sunday night, there will be Padova against Città di Castello. The rest of the game will be at 6pm on Sunday, with the derby between Crema and Mantova, the regional clash between Ravenna and Bologna. The league leaders will host Isernia. Bassano Volley – Edilesse Cavriago and Codyeco Santa Croce – M. Roma Volley complete the round.
Massa is rested.
Round 27
Saturday 13 march at 8.30pm
Globo Banca Popolare del Frusinate Sora – Nava Gioia del Colle – Live on SNAI Sat from 8.20pm
(Zingoni-Valeriani)
Sunday 14 march at 6pm
Samgas Crema – Canadiens Mantova
(Perdisci-Piubelli)
BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte – Katay Geotec Isernia
(Bertoletti-Piluso)
Marcegaglia Ravenna – Zinella Bologna
(Gentile-Longo)
Bassano Volley – Edilesse Cavriago
(Prati-Florian)
Codyeco Santa Croce – M. Roma Volley
(Gini-Contini)
Sunday 14 march at 8.30pm
Pallavolo Padova – Città di Castello Pallavolo – Live on SNAI Sat from 8.20
(Toso-Bernobich)
Quasar Massa Versilia – RESTED
League table
BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte 59, M. Roma Volley 51, Zinella Bologna 49, Globo Banca Popolare del Frusinate Sora 45, Samgas Crema 41, Marcegaglia Ravenna 39, Codyeco S.Croce 37, Pallavolo Padova 36, Città di Castello Pallavolo 35, Edilesse Cavriago 32, Katay Geotec Isernia 30, Quasar Massa Versilia 25, Bassano Volley 24, Canadiens Mantova 23, Nava Gioia del Colle 20.
1 game more: Città di Castello Pallavolo, Edilesse Cavriago, Quasar Massa Versilia, Bassano Volley
