Setback for Prosecco Doc: Sunday 4 December evening, within the friendly walls, suffered the first defeat of the season inflicted by Scandicci which outlasted the Panthers in a clear cut. And it is no coincidence that the first Gialloblù debacle came at a complex moment for Santarelli’s squad which had to deal with the defections of several starting players.
Out Marina Lubian, who has been dealing with shoulder pain for some time. Out too Hook and Plummer, among the most profitable strikers, on the bench with zero leg workouts due to a feverish attack. These changes are worrying, given that international commitments are just around the corner: the first Champions League match on Wednesday at the Palaverde and the next departure for Turkey for the Club World Cup.
They were different initiatives promoted in the field during the pre match: from the first seasonal social day which hosted the initiative “A stuffed animal for a smile” in favor of Lilt-Giocare in Corsia, to the one promoted by the Volley League to condemn violence and abuse, in particular to support women victims of the Iranian regime and Fahimeh Karimi, a volleyball teacher sentenced to death for participating in protests.
The day was also spiced up by rumors that they would see thearrival in gialloblù by Julia Bergman, but Maschio firmly denies it. Santarelli then fielded the tenth possible formation made up of Wolosz and Gray, Squarcini and De Kruijf, Gennari and Cook in band, De Gennaro free. Barbolini instead bet on Di Iulio and Mingardi, Washington and Belien in the center, Sorokaite and Ting, Castilio.
Not an easy match start for the panthers who had some difficulty in being incisive in attack. New balance in the sextet led to a slower game, supported in the first stages by a masterful De Kruijf who scored 7 points during the first set.
On the other side Ting and teammates tried to impose their own pace on the set, defending many yellow and blue attacks and continuing to do well in attack. On 14 all Scandicci began to build and grow first with Mingardi and then with Sorokaite scoring 5 consecutive points (14-19).
Long actions and defenses, from the volleyball textbook, they marked the second part of the set where Prosecco Doc tried to mend the disadvantage, an almost successful attempt, except that Ting then closed the set. The first yellow-blue wall, the work of Cook, gave the panthers a jolt. With the entry of Antropova in serve, Barbolini tried to stop the advance of Prosecco Doc (12-6), succeeding perfectly with a partial of 0-7.
Splashes of good play alternating with moments of blackout in which the panthers seemed to be in great difficulty, they sanctioned the closure of the second set. To forget when seen in the previous set, including a lack of agreement with Wolosz, De Kruijf signed his presence on the field from the beginning in the third set with 2 points in the first 4 exchanges. Then it was a go up and down, with Scandicci who continued to attack with Antropova and great strength, and made the Gialloblù lose confidence who gradually let themselves go (8-16). In the last few parts of the set, the panthers tried to reverse the course with some flare-ups in which their game was revised, but they could do nothing against the good game of Washington and teammates (19-25).