Supercoppa champions Imoco back to Lega action

Defending champions Prosecco Doc Imoco Conegliano will get back to Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A action with a big challenge as the recently-crowned Italian Supercoppa champions will face another of the country’s giants in the first midweek round of the 2023-2024 season.

One of the seven matches set to happen on Wednesday will have the Panthers going on the road against Savino Del Bene Scandicci at 20:30 local time (19:30 UTC). The teams are currently ranked third and second in the standings, with three wins (Savino Del Bene have ten points and Imoco, nine).

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Defending champions Imoco have won their first three Lega Femminile matches, against Itas Trentino, Honda Olivero S. Bernardo Cuneo and Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri with just one set dropped, but missed last weekend’s round as they overcame Allianz Vero Volley Milano to successfully defend their Supercoppa title.

With 53 points scored in three matches, Swedish opposite Isabelle Haak has been one of the individual standouts for Imoco at the start of the Lega Femminile season. Star setter Joanna Wołosz, who took MVP honors in the Supercoppa, is another key piece for the Panthers.

“We took a day off after winning the Supercoppa and got back to work because we have a difficult week with matches against Savino Del Bene and Milano,” head coach Daniele Santarelli explained. “Savino Del Bene are one of the top teams in the league, I think they have one of the best squads in Italy, featuring players with quality and intelligence. I think this match has all the ingredients to be an excellent one.”

Imoco have been historically dominant against Savino Del Bene, having won 22 of the 27 duels between the teams over the years and 15 of the 16 held since 2019.

“I believe Imoco start the season as the favorites again,” Savino Del Bene’s head coach Massimo Barbolini said. “Not only they won the league for the last five years, but they also have made the least changes in their roster. It will be a difficult match and we’ll need to play at our best, but it will also be an opportunity to see where we are at. We know we’re not ready yet, but we’ve played some tough opponents and were still able to get ten points, so we’re happy with what we’ve accomplished so far.”

Savino Del Bene have played four matches in the Italian League already, having topped Il Bisonte Firenze, Uyba Volley Busto Arsizio and Trasportipesanti Casalmaggiore and fallen to Milano in the tie-breaker.

The team from Florence has some of the Italian League’s top producers so far as opposite Ekaterina Antropova leads the tournament in points (90) and aces (11) while libero Enrica Merlo is first in passes (37).

Other matches

It will be a long day of action in Italy on Wednesday, with one match beginning at 16:00 local time (15:00 UTC) – Firenze vs. Roma Volley Club -, another one at 17:00 local time (16:00 UTC) – Megabox Ondulati Savio Vallefoglia vs. Chieri -, two duels starting at 18:00 local time (17:00 UTC) – Igor Gorgonzola Novara vs. Trentino and Casalmaggiore vs. Cuneo – and two ending the day at 20:30 local time (19:30 UTC) – Volley Bergamo 1991 vs. Milano and Wash4Green Pinerolo vs. Busto.

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