Weekend Review: Everything you missed and should know

It was a good week for Polish men's volleyball teams, as Grupa Azoty ‘Zaksa’ Kędzierzyn-Koźle and Jastrzebski Wegiel have both been able to create an advantage in the semifinal round of the CEV Champions League with victories over teams from Italy and Türkiye.

Also in Poland, Grupa Azoty Chemik Police won their 10th Women's Polish Cup title. Not too far from there, in France, Tours lifted a trophy, winning the Men's French Cup title for the 11th time.

The SuperLega Credem Banca quarterfinals aren't over just yet, with Itas Trentino being the first team to make it to the semifinals and the three remaining series (Sir Safety Perugia vs. Allianz Milano, Valsa Group Modena vs. Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza and Cucine Lube Civitanova vs. WithU Verona) all going to the fifth match next weekend.

At the Lega Pallavolo Serie A1 Femminile, the playoff field is now set, with E-Work Busto Arsizio and Volley Bergamo taking the last two spots in the postseason. Next weekend's round will determine the exact matchups in the Italian League quarterfinals.

In beach volleyball, duos from China and Australia triumphed in a Beach Pro Tour Futures tournament in Coolangatta Beach, Australia, while Duda Lisboa/Ana Patrícia Ramos and Andre Loyola/George Wanderley made it to the top of the podium in a Brazilian Tour event held in Itapema, the next stop of the Beach Pro Tour later this week.

Here's the best of what happened in volleyball around the world over the last few days:

Volleyball

Zaksa and Wegiel ahead in CEV Champions League semifinals

Polish rivals Grupa Azoty ‘Zaksa’ Kędzierzyn-Koźle and Jastrzebski Wegiel got a head start in the semfinals of the CEV Men’s Champions League, winning their first-leg duels on Wednesday. Defending champions Zaksa downed reigning world champions Sir Safety Susa Perugia of Italy 3-1, the same score as Wegiel’s triumph over Türkiye’s Halkbank Ankara – check the details on CEV’s recaps. The returning legs will be played this week.

Tours take home 11th French Cup title

France giants Tours returned to the top of the podium in the French Cup for the first time since 2018-2019, claiming their 11th title in the tournament on Sunday. The team was dominant against rivals Nice in the gold medal match, securing a straight-set victory to take the title. Brazilian opposite Aboubacar Dramé scored ten points for Tours and was the MVP of the gold medal match. The French Federation recap has the details.

Chemik Police triumph at Polish Cup for the tenth time

The Women's Polish Cup came to an end on Sunday, when Grupa Azoty Chemik Police won the tournament for the tenth time. The team overcame rivals ŁKS Commercecon Łódź in a dramatic tie-breaker (21-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-15, 15-12) in Nysa. Serbian opposite Jovana Brakocević was the top performer of the gold medal match, with 32 points. Here's the Polish Federation recap.

Brazilian Women’s Superliga playoffs set

The Brazilian Women’s Superliga regular season is now completed and the four quarterfinal duels of the tournament are now set. Regular season winners Dentil Praia Club will face eighth-placed Barueri Volleyball Club, runners-up Osasco São Cristovão Saúde will meet seventh-placed EC Pinheiros, third-placed Gerdau Minas are set to compete against sixth-placed SESI Vôlei Bauru and fourth-placed SESC RJ Flamengo will play Rio de Janeiro rivals and fifth-placed Fluminense FC.

Trentino secure the first spot in SuperLega semifinals

Itas Trentino are the first semifinalists of the 2022-2023 SuperLega Credem Banca after they defeated Vero Volley Monza 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) on Sunday and ended the series between the teams 3-1. The other three series remain open, with Sir Safety Susa Perugia battling Allianz Milano, Valsa Group Modena playing Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza and Cucine Lube Civitanova challenging WithU Verona. Here's our recap for the weekend round.

Field set for Lega Pallavolo Serie A1 Femminile’s playoffs

The 25^th and penultimate leg of Lega Pallavolo Serie A1 Femminile set the field for the Italian League playoffs as now the eight teams that will take part in the postseason are known. Il Bisonte Firenze entered the weekend as the only team outside the qualification zone with hopes of getting in, but their straight-set loss to Vero Volley Milano ended their dreams and guaranteed E-Work Busto Arsizio and Volley Bergamo in the postseason. Find out more in our weekly recap.

Beach Volleyball

Chinese and Australians win Coolangatta Futures

Teams from China and Australia were the winners of the second Futures event of the 2023 Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour season, topping the podium of the tournament held in Coolangatta Beach, Australia, on Sunday. Chinese Ha Likejiang and Wu Jiaxin were the men’s winners, after they topped Thailand’s Pithak Tipjan/Poravid Taovato in the final. The women’s tournament had an all-Australian gold medal match, with Jana Milutinovic and Stefanie Fejes overcoming compatriots Georgia Johnson and Jasmine Fleming. Check out our tournament recap.

Duda/Ana Patrícia and Andre/George triumph at Brazilian Tour event in Itapema

Beach Pro Tour star duos of Eduarda ‘Duda’ Lisboa/Ana Patrícia Ramos and Andre Loyola/George Wanderley were the winners of the second stop of the 2023 Brazilian Tour, having triumphed in Itapema, the city that will host a Beach Pro Tour Challenge tournament later this week. World champions Duda and Ana Patrícia topped veterans Carol Salgado and Bárbara Seixas in the gold medal match, while Andre and George overcame up-and-comers Arthur Mariano and Adrielson dos Santos. Here’s the info provided by the Brazilian Federation.