II stage of Champions League qualification 2024 (men)
Group 6. 1st round. November 10
Galatians Romania
"Arcade" — VC "Prometey" 3-0 (25:15, 25:21, 25:14)
The current champion of Ukraine VC "Prometey" could not withstand the onslaught of the stands and the rapid attacks of the Romanian team "Arcada". The first game of the II stage of the Champions League qualification ended with a "3:0" defeat of our guys.
Starting line-up of VC "Prometey": Shapoval (11), Stankovic (1), Yereshchenko (9), Veletskyi (2), Teremenko (5), Shchytkov (c), Boiko (l), Brova (l). Substitutes: Viietskyi (6), Yevstratov, Yanchuk, Kryvobok, Hladenko (2).
From the first minutes, our opponents worked hard on the block, thanks to which they secured a comfortable handicap. With the score 5:1, "Prometey" needed a time-out. Immediately after the break, thanks to the efforts of Dmytro Shapoval, the Ukrainians finally managed their reception. However, this moment did not become a turning point.
At the equator of the set, the gap between teams was seven points (12:5). The hosts combined, often ending attacks with a "pipe" (16:7). Andrii Levchenko resorted to substitutions, in particular, instead of Vitalii Shchytkov, Serhii Yevstratov appeared on the court. However, they did not fundamentally affect the course of the opening set - 25:15.
In the next set, the "red and whites" significantly improved reception and serving, due to which they began to impose their game on the opponents. Soon after Yan Yereshchenko's single block, Prometey took the lead for the first time in this meeting (6:7).
Our own mistakes prevented our players from making a more confident spurt. In the end, the teams had approximately equal chances to win (20:19). Unfortunately, under the applause of the stands, the representatives of "Arcada" did double the score by the sets - 25:21.
In the third set, the champions of Ukraine had no choice but to take risks, in particular, on the serve. However, this risk did not always bear fruit (5:2). Once again Levchenko's wards were forced to catch up, and once again the Romanians had the last word - 25:14.
