Novara determined to pass Milano this weekend

The only match set to take place in the 2023-2024 Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A Tigotà this weekend, the duel between Igor Gorgonzola Novara and Trasportipesanti Casalmaggiore could have huge implications in the Italian League standings.

The teams will meet on Saturday, at 20:30 local time (19:30 GMT), in Cremona, in a postponed encounter of the second leg of the second round of the regular season, while Allianz Vero Volley Milano, Prosecco Doc Imoco Conegliano, Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri and Savino Del Bene Scandicci battle in the Coppa Italia Frecciarossa Final Four in Trieste.

• Watch Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A1 matches live on VBTV.

Currently in third place in the standings with 47 points (16 wins), Novara have a clear goal entering the court this weekend – to overtake Milano and climb to second. As their opponents have 49 points (17 wins), a 3-0 or 3-1 victory would place Novara ahead of them with six more legs to be played until the end of the regular season.

Novara, who were surprisingly knocked out of the Coppa Italia by Chieri less than a month ago, have recovered well from the upset, having won all five matches they played after that. The most recent of them was a pivotal 3-2 road win against Milano last weekend, which put them in a position to pass them this week.

“Casalmaggiore have been one of the best teams in the league lately and they're certainly very confident right now,” reflected head coach Lorenzo Bernardi. “We knew that the position they were at didn't reflect the quality of their team and now, with more confidence and players like (Micha) Hancock, (Malwina) Smarzek and (Simone) Lee having great performances, they're playing at their real level. It's an important match for us and we're ready for a very difficult duel.”

Opposite Vita Akimova has been one of Novara’s top players this season. The 21-year-old Russian ranks second in the Italian League in points scored with 396 and has surpassed the 20-point mark in each of the team’s last five matches.

Lega Femminile - Match Schedule and Results

Casalmaggiore, however, have also been in great form lately. The team had a difficult moment between November and December, having dropped eight straight matches, but look reinvigorated in 2024, having won four of their five matches after the turn of the year, including the last three, and have triumphed in consecutive matches for the first time in the season.

The good run of form has made Casalmaggiore start aiming higher. If a few weeks ago the team’s main concern was to avoid relegation, now ranking tenth with 20 points (six wins), they can dream about appearing in the playoffs and a home victory against Novara would cut their difference to Roma Volley Club (27 points, nine wins), the first team above the qualification line, to just four points.

“I feel that in these last few matches, we’ve finally been able to perform at the level we wanted since the start of the season,” said outside hitter Elena Perinelli. “The mood in the team is much better and that also helps us go on the court and play in the way we’ve been training. Novara are a great team and will be tough opponents, but we need to make the most of our good form and try to keep our performance at a very high level.”

Polish opposite Malwina Smarzek has been a key player in Casalmaggiore’s good moment in the season. The 27-year-old player has 324 points in the season, the seventh-best mark in the entire Italian League, and has reached double digits in scoring in the last seven matches.

Despite playing on the road, Novara can be considered the favorites for Saturday’s match as they’ve won 21 of the 30 matches played against Casalmaggiore and haven’t lost to their opponents since 2020. This season, the teams met three times, all in the same week in October, with one duel in the Italian League and two in the CEV Challenge Cup, and Novara won all three, dropping just one set.

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