Superlega 2023

Deciding upsets push Allianz and Vero Volley to SuperLega semis

A recap of Italian SuperLega’s fifth quarterfinal matches

Published 08:13, 28 Mar 2024

The players of Allianz Milan celebrate in Piacenza (source: legavolley.it)

The players of Allianz Milan celebrate in Piacenza

Away victories over higher-seeded teams in the deciding fifth-leg quarterfinal matches pushed Allianz Milan and Mint Vero Volley Monza to the semifinals of Italy’s SuperLega Credem Banca, in which they will take on reigning club world champions Sir Susa Vim Perugia and defending Italian champions Itas Trentino Trento, respectively, in the race for the spots in the championship series.

  • Watch Italy’s SuperLega Credem Banca live and on demand on VBTV.

Allianz Milan, entering the playoffs as the sixth-placed team in the regular season, hammered out a 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-22) sweep of their visit to third-placed Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza in front of over three thousand fans on the stands and closed the series by 3-2 in wins. The visitors compensated for the more unforced errors they made with a more prolific performance in spiking, blocking and serving. Japanese star outside hitter Yuki Ishikawa delivered a match-high 18 points, including 16 spikes at a 59% success rate in attack and two kill blocks. Young Belgian opposite Ferre Reggers added another 16 points (15 spikes, one ace) towards the victory and claimed the Most Valuable Player award, while his Gas Sales counterpart Yuri Romano led his team with 14 points, including one block.

“Well done to the guys, who believed in it after game three! They were good at pulling off their magic, when it was needed, because they are truly magical. We succeeded against a great team against whom we only went 3-2 this year. Now heads down, let's enjoy the evening.” Roberto Piazza, head coach of Allianz Milan
“After a match like this, there is little to comment other than the fact that we did little on the court and our opponents found few difficulties on their way. The attitude wasn't the right one and this was certainly the least balanced match of the series. Our season was disappointing, you can't say otherwise.” Andrea Anastasi, head coach of Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza

Piacenza vs. Milano | Highlights | Superlega | Round 5 of the Quarterfinals

Mint Vero Volley Monza, fifth in the regular season, also persevered through a five-game quarterfinal series to win Wednesday night’s decider on the court of their fourth-placed opponents in front of over 3,600 spectators cheering from the stands. Vero Volley celebrated a 3-1 (25-23, 25-23, 20-25, 25-22) victory over Cucine Lube Civitanova and knocked last year’s silver medallists out of contention for this season’s podium. Canadian outside Stephen Maar raised as many as six kill blocks towards a match-high 22 points and earned the MVP nomination. He spiked at a 58% success rate and added one ace to his tally. His Japanese cross-court teammate Ran Takahashi fired another 19 points, while Canadian opposite Arthur Szwarc put away another 14 for Vero Volley. Rising Bulgarian star Aleksandar Nikolov led Lube with 19 points. Cuban outside Marlon Yant finished with 18 and Turkish opposite Adis Lagumdzija added another 10 for the home side.

“It wasn't easy and I'm not just talking about this last match. The whole series was very tough. They did well to recover after the first two defeats. They managed to raise the level of their game, putting us in difficulty. Today was a beautiful match, in which we put our hearts into the pitch, as we always have this season.” Fernando Kreling, setter of Mint Vero Volley Monza
“We fought, but it didn't help us impose ourselves. Monza deserved it by playing with greater consistency in all the matches. We, on the other hand, had our ups and downs. We have to accept it and congratulate our opponents on their great series. We have to learn and mature. We are a young team. This was a good lesson for us. Now we have to try to win the fifth place.” Luciano De Cecco, setter of Cucine Lube Civitanova

Civitanova vs. Monza | Highlights | Superlega | Round 5 of the Quarterfinals

The best-of-five semifinals start on Sunday with Trentino hosting Vero Volley and Sir entertaining Allianz for the first-leg matches. Meanwhile, the four quarterfinal losers – Gas Sales, Lube, Rana Verona and Valsa Group Modena – will join the teams that finished ninth and 10th in the regular season – Cisterna Volley and Pallavolo Padova Padua, respectively – in the race for the fifth place, which opens the gate to next season’s European Cups.

SuperLega Credem Banca 2023-2024 semifinals – 1st leg:
Mar 31, 18:00 local (16:00 UTC): Itas Trentino Trento v Mint Vero Volley Monza
Mar 31, 19:00 local (17:00 UTC): Sir Susa Vim Perugia v Allianz Milan

SuperLega Credem Banca 2023-2024: full schedule and results

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