MONZA, 29 MARCH 2024 – Another Series is underway Scudetto semi-final for the MINT True Volley Monza by Massimo Eccheli, the second overall in its history in SuperLega Credem Bancawait the day after tomorrow, Sunday 31 March, at 6.00 pm (live Rai Sport and volleyballworld.tv) by the reigning Italian champions of Itas Trentinoat the“IL T Quotidiano Arena” For Race 1. The game is played, like in the Quarter Finals, where Beretta and his teammates eliminated the Cucina Lube Civitanovathe best of five matches, with the Brianza region hosting the Trentino team on Wednesday evening at the Opiquad Arena for Game-2.
Determination, quality, coherence of play: Monza will try to start again from these aspects to try to direct the Series against Trento immediately on the right tracks and then take advantage of the home match to fly only where the eagles dare, dreaming of the Italian Final. With the attacks of Szwarc and Maar (the latter MVP of the match won last Wednesday against the Marches 1-3), the central accelerations of Galassi and Di Martino, those from nine meters of Loeppky and Takahashi (often decisive with their turns) and Gaggini’s defenses, the first men’s team of the Vero Volley Consortium will try to bring home an important smile, taking advantage of the positive results obtained this season.
The third match in the Scudetto Play Offs table between the two teams will begin on Sunday. There are already two quarter-final matches in the archive (2017 and 2023 editions), with Trento having prevailed in both circumstances, winning five of the six matches played. Never before had the challenge taken place in the semi-final, as instead happened in the annual edition of the Italian Cup (then won by the Brianza team at the tie break last January 27th in Bologna). In the archive there are also an Italian Super Cup Final (2021, won by Trento 3-1 in Civitanova) and three quarter-finals of the Italian Cup (2017, 2018 and 2022 editions). However, in all the direct clashes, Itas Trentino has always had the upper hand.
THE OPPONENT | ITAS TRENTINO
Itas Trentino ended the regular season in first place ahead of Perugia (five points and two more victories). The Trentino team made it through the Quarter Finals of the Play Offs by beating Modena with a clear 3-0 and in the meantime they also gained access to the last act of the CEV Champions League, defeating Civitanova in the Semifinal. The most sensational news from the market last summer had already arrived long before the conquest of the Italian title, with the failure to confirm Angelo Lorenzetti and of Matey Kaziyski. On the bench is the ex of the match Fabio Soli from Cisterna, while it arrived as the opposite Kamil Rychlicki and in the center ready Jan Kozamernik in the place of Srecko Lisinac, who also migrated to other shores. Interesting additions on the bench with Acquarone And Magalini. At the beginning of March, Trento also had to add the French setter Matthieu Garcia, replacing the injured Riccardo Sbertoli.
COMPLETE ROSTER – MINT VERO VOLLEY MONZA
Setters KRELING, VISIC
Centers BERETTA, DI MARTINO, GALASSI, COMPARONI
Spikers MAAR, SZWARC, TAKAHASHI, LOEPPKY, MUJANOVIC
Free GAGGINI, MORAZZINI
Coach ECCHELI
COMPLETE ROSTER – ITAS TRENTINO
SBERTOLI setters, ACQUARONE
D’HEER, KOZAMERNIK, BERGER, PODRASCANIN power plants
Spikers NELLI, MICHIELETTO, CAVUTO, RYCHLICKI, MAGALINI, LAVIA
Free PACI, LAURENZANO
SOLI coach
CURIOSITY’
The 2024 Scudetto Play Off semi-final pairings are the same as those presented in the identical phase of the 2024 Italian Cup draw, when Trento-Monza and Perugia-Milan were played in Bologna on 27 January. The similarities with the recent past, however, do not end here, given that Itas Trentino-Vero Volley Monza and Sir Susa Perugia-Allianz Milano were also two of the four matches that took place in the quarter-finals of the previous Scudetto Playoff draw (2023).
PREVIOUS: 31 (4 successes Mint Vero Volley Monza, 27 successes Itas Trentino)
FORMER: Gianluca Galassi in Trento in 2014/15 – Coaches: Fabio Soli in Monza in 2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21
HUNTING FOR RECORDS
In the 2023/2024 Season Play Offs:
Arthur Szwarc – 12 points in the 100, 22 successful attacks in the 100
Stephen Maar – 15 points in the 100
Ran Takahashi – 28 points in the 100
In the 2023/2024 season all competitions:
Gabriele Di Martino – 14 points at 200
Arthur Szwarc – 20 successful attacks at 400
Eric Loeppky – 36 points at 300
Ran Takahashi – 5 points at 300
Play Offs in career:
Arthur Szwarc – 12 successful attacks at 100
Ran Takahashi – 28 points in the 100
Stephen Maar – 8 successful attacks at 200
Thomas Beretta – 8 points at 200
All competitions in career:
Eric Loeppky – 17 successful attacks at 1000m
Gabriele Di Martino – 21 points at 1300
Arthur Szwarc – 28 successful attacks at 1000m
Stephen Maar – 28 successful attacks at 2300
Francesco Comparoni – 6 winning attacks at 200
PRE-MATCH STATEMENTS
Massimo Eccheli (coach MINT Vero Volley Monza): “For us, Trento has always been a taboo field where, even with good performances, we have never managed to bring home the victory. The field factor may not be on our side, but it is true that every match has its own story. We face this championship semi-final with a lot of enthusiasm, with the awareness of being a tough and hungry team, with the desire to do the feat.”
1st day of semi-finals – Play Off SuperLega Credem Banca
Sunday 31 March 2024, 6.00 pm
Itas Trentino – Mint Vero Volley Monza
Referees: Cerra Alessandro, Zanussi Umberto (Giardini Massimiliano)
Live Rai Sport and VBTV
Sunday 31 March 2024, 7.00 pm
Sir Susa Vim Perugia – Allianz Milan
Referees: Pozzato Andrea, Zavater Marco (Merli Maurizio)
Live VBTV
CHAMPIONSHIP FORMULA
The top 8 ranked in Regular Season participate. Quarters, Semifinals and Finals with the best of 5 matches. The Scudetto finalists access the Champions League 24/25. 3rd Place Final: the losing teams participate in the Semi-finals with the formula of 3 games won out of 5 (the winner advances to the Champions League 24/25, the loser to the CEV Cup 24/25). 5th Place Play Off: the four losers of the Scudetto Play Off Quarter Finals and the 9th and 10th classified at the end of the Regular Season play a one-way round-robin tournament (5 games for each team). Then Semi-finals and Final in a single match at the home of the best ranked team at the end of the tournament. The winner is qualified for the 2024/25 Challenge Cup.
