Super League-Dmart 2023/24 (women)
Play-offs (1/4 finals). The first game. March 1
"Dobrodiy-Meduniversitet-ShVSM" — SC "Balta" 2-3 (15:25, 25:17, 23:25, 25:22, 12:15)
The volleyball players of "Balta" defeated the vice-champions of Ukraine and took the lead in the Super League-Dmart playoff series. Like the previous matches of the clubs in the regular season, this game was also quite tense and ended only in a tie-break.
The representatives of Odesa, combining in attack, seized the initiative from the opening minutes of the meeting, which they managed to transform into a confident leadership (2:6). Also, it is worth mentioning that due to the injury of Anastasiia Horbachenko the day before, the head coach of the Balta team, Andriy Romanovych, could count on only one of his setters - Anastasiia Malysheva.
At a certain moment, on the serve of Daria Skliarova, the advantage of "Balta" increased up to nine points (5:14). Yuliia Yakusheva, the coach of "Dobrodiy" tried to correct the situation on the court with substitutions. However, the structure of the Vinnytsia teams' game did not change after these rotations, because in those minutes there were too many mistakes in their actions - 15:25.
The break between the sets benefited the "Dobrodiy": they started to play more boldly in attack, in particular Valeriia Yakusheva (6:5). Valentyna Vorotnychenko's ace and another effective shot by the captain improved their position (8:5). A time-out from Romanovych brought his wards to their senses, but, as it turned out, not for long.
Yes, for a certain time, the scoreboard showed equality in the set (16:16), but then the scales completely tilted in favor of "Dobrodiy". We note the desperate actions of the athletes of this team in defense, who simply saved the "dead" points. As a result, they not only regained the 3-point lead but also developed their success — 25:17.
The third segment of the confrontation promised to be very interesting and, as it usually happens, a turning point. In the end, all expectations were met. Initially, it was Yakusheva's wards who were in a better psychological tone than their opponents, which was also reflected in the score (11:8). With each rally, the Balta team minimized the number of mistakes and seized the initiative. At the end of the set, thanks to the organized block, the Vinnytsia team had a good chance to win (23:22), but their opponents turned out to have stronger nerves — 23:25.
The next set was marked by so-called "swings". The sides went evenly, exchanging local leads (14:14). Next, Valeriia Yakusheva knocked the opponent out of the reception, which helped her team comfortably break out ahead (19:14). As a result, the serve of the captain of "Dobrodiy" became decisive in this set - 25:22. It seemed that the players from Vinnytsia should have the psychological advantage in the tie-break, but they could were not able to use it - 12:15.
Starting line-up of VC "Dobrodiy-Meduniversitet-ShVSM": Yakusheva (c) (47),Kucher (9), Muzychenko (13), Vorotnychenko (4), Kalanchuk (8), Siriatska (1), Bukatseli (l), Boiko (l). Substitutes: Kostianets, Kryva (2), Zavala, Vabishchevych.
The starting line-up of SC "Balta": Lysa (3), Ratii (8), Skliarova (20), Nohina (21), Strelbytska (17), Malysheva (6), Karasova (l). Substitutes: Berezovska, Dromova (3).
