On Wednesday evening, in a first-leg fixture, Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie achieved their first win of the season. They disappointed the home crowd at the Azoty with a 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 26-24, 25-23) victory over ZAKSA Kedzierzyn-Kozle. Outside hitter Bartosz Kwolek led the winners with 20 points, including the match winner. His tally included two aces and a kill block. Another three Aluron players reached the double digits in scoring – middle blocker Mateusz Bieniek with 12 points, opposite Bartlomjej Bolandz with 12, and American outside Aaron Russell with 10. ZAKSA’s Italian international opposite Kamil Rychlicki emerged as the best scorer of the game with 25 points for the home team, including two aces and a block. Aluron improved to 3 points and a 1-1 win-loss record in ninth place, while winless ZAKSA are 11th in the current standings on 1 and 0-2.
In a second-leg fixture on Tuesday, Ukraine’s Barkom Kazhany Lviv celebrated their first victory of the new season. Playing “at home” in Elblag, they battled it out for a 3-2 (24-26, 25-23, 25-20, 21-25, 15-11) win over their visitors Steam Hemarpol Politechnika Czestochowa. Barkom’s Australian outside Lorenzo Pope and Steam’s Czech opposite Patrik Indra shared the top scorer honors of the match with 25 points each. Pope spiked at a 57% success rate and put away two aces and two kill blocks, while all of Indra’s points came in swings at a 61% success rate. The Ukrainian team rose to eighth place on 3 and 1-1, while the squad from Czestochowa stands second from the bottom, in 11th place on 1 and 0-2.
On Wednesday, their first win of the season was also marked by PGE GiEK SKRA Belchatow, who hammered out a 3-0 (25-22, 25-17, 28-26) shutout of Cuprum Stilon Gorzow Wielkopolski on the road in a game of the first leg of the new championship. Their Romanian outside Daniel Chitigoi contributed a match-high 15 points, including two kill blocks, while the MVP recognition went to middle blocker Bartlomiej Lemanski, who raised five kill blocks and registered a 62% success rate in attack to finish with 13 points. SKRA climbed to fifth place in the table on 4 and 1-1, while Cuprum Stilon occupy 12th place on 1 and 0-2.
PlusLiga action will resume with the matches of the third leg set to take place from Friday, October 31, to Monday, November 3.
