Conegliano, Novara head for showdown undefeated

Defending champions Prosecco Doc Imoco Volley Conegliano and challengers to the title Igor Gorgonzola Novara both doubled their wins in the Italian Women's A1 League over the weekend, as they prepare to go head-to-head in midweek action.

Conegliano dashed any aspirations rookies Acqua & Sapone Roma Volley Club may have had to extend the match when they came back from 24-22 down to tie the score in the third, scoring a 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 26-24) on the back of Paola Egonu's match high of 18 points and Robin de Kruijf's four blocks.

It was Conegliano's 67th victory on the trot, across all seasons and competitions.

And Novara shut out Vbc Trasporti Pesanti Casalmaggiore 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-11) with 10 points from Sara Bonifacio and five aces by USA's Micha Hancock.

The two table leaders are undefeated after two rounds of play in the Regular Season - though something has to give on Thursday when they go head-to-head as action continues midweek with Round 3.

• This match, along with all others of the Italian men's and women's leagues will be televised live and also available on demand, on VolleyballWorld.tv.

Unet E-Work Busto Arsizio are the only other undefeated side after two rounds of play in the league, following their 3-1 (25-17, 20-25, 25-20, 25-18) win on the road over Megabox Ondulati Del Savio Vallefoglia.

Busto Arsizio were led by Camilla Mingardi who scored 28 points and Canada's Alexa Gray who added another 23, to counter the 24 points of Vallefoglia's captain Tatiana Kosheleva of Russia.

Elsewhere over the weekend, Alice Degradi scored 20 points and France's Lucille Gicquel added another 19 to lead Bosca S.Bernardo Cuneo to a 3-2 (25-16, 17-25, 21-25, 25-16, 15-4) win at Trento over Delta Despar Trentino.

And Poland's Magdalena Stysiak hauled in 28 points as she lifted Vero Volley Monza to their first win of the season, 3-1 (25-27, 25-15, 25-20, 25-13) at home over Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri.

In other action, Savino Del Bene Scandicci also returned to victories with a 3-1 (25-15, 26-24, 20-25, 25-15) win at home over Volley Bergamo and Il Bisonte of Florence beat Bartoccini-Fortinfissi Perugia on the road 3-1 (24-26, 25-21, 25-21, 25-23) with Sylvia Nwakalor bagging 23 points.

The League continues on Wednesday and Thursday with Round 3 of the Regular Season, with all matches streamed live on VolleyballWorld.tv.

Get all the results, statistics and more on the official website of the Italian women's League.