The battle between Igor Gorgonzola Novara and Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri ’76 for the fourth and last spot in the 2024-2025 Lega Volley Femminile Serie A1 Tigotà semifinals will come to an end on Wednesday, when the teams will meet for the third time in ten days.

After splitting wins in the first two matches of their best-of-three quarterfinal series, the teams will face off for a third and decisive time at 20:30 local time (19:30 GMT), at the Pala Igor Gorgonzola, in Novara, with the winners advancing to play against defending champions Prosecco Doc Imoco Conegliano in the next round of the playoffs.

• Watch the Lega Volley Femminile Serie A1 Tigotà playoffs live on VBTV

Homecourt advantage has been a big factor in encounters involving the teams this season as in the four matches held in 2024-2025, the side that played at home managed to claim the win. Interestingly, despite the similar level of play displayed by Novara, who were fourth in the regular season, and Chieri, who were fifth, three of the four duels were resolved in straight sets, including the two in the postseason.

After winning the first match of the series ten days ago, Novara were very close to confirming their presence in the Italian League semifinals for an eighth straight season, but they couldn’t bring the series to an end on the road against Chieri.

One of the keys for them to triumph at home will be getting American opposite Taylor Mims and Japanese star outside hitter Mayu Ishikawa back to the form they showed in the first match of the series, when they combined to produce 34 points – last week, when the team lost, the two were limited to 12.

Other potential scoring options for the team are German Lina Alsmeier, who registered 23 points across the first two matches, and Russian outside hitter Tatiana Tolok, the team’s third-best scorer in the season with 346 points.

“We need to switch gears for this final match,” said middle blocker Sara Bonifacio. “Nothing really worked well for us in the second match, especially our blocking and defense. But now it starts from zero again and we need to be aggressive form the first point to the last.”

Lega Volley Femmnilie – Match Schedule & Results

Chieri enter Wednesday’s decisive match full of confidence after not only avoiding early elimination last Sunday, but doing so with a convincing home win. After being eliminated in the quarterfinals in the last four seasons, they want to take the next step now and play in the Italian League semifinals for the first time in club history.

The performance of the team’s ‘Big Three’ of outside hitters Avery Skinner and Anne Buijs and opposite Lucille Gicquel will likely determine Chieri’s success on Wednesday in Novara. After combining for just 29 points in the first match of the series, the three stepped up to deliver 44 last Sunday, guiding the team to victory.

“Sunday’s victory was very important as we needed a performance like that after not playing well in the first match,” said Chieri’s middle blocker Anna Gray. “For match three, we need to keep the calm and mental clarity we showed last weekend. It’s not going to be easy, Novara will have a chip on their shoulder and they won’t give us anything for free. We’ll need to be able to play the clean, steady game that has brought us here.”

Historically, Novara have been the most successful side when the teams meet in the Italian League, having come out on top in 15 of the 23 encounters held up to now.

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