The Orange Dragons Justify Their Role as Favorites on Home Court

In the second round of the Sportklub Slovenian Volleyball League, we witnessed a match between ACH Volley Ljubljana and FužinarSijMetal from Ravne na Koroškem at Ljubljana’s Tivoli Hall. The Slovenian champions were convincingly the better team on their home court, living up to their role as favorites. They celebrated their second league victory with a 3:0 win.

Ljubljana – Tivoli Sports Hall, spectators: 188, referees: Blaž Markelj, Anton Pevc.

ACH Volley Ljubljana : FužinarSijMetalRavne 3 : 0 (19, 13, 14).

ACH Volley Ljubljana: Golzadeh 16, Jošt Kržič 5, Šket, Najdič, Marovt 15, Šen 4, Janž Janez Kržič 5, Kovačič (L), Štalekar, Pokeršnik, Videčnik, Kök 9, Kožar, Kumer (L). Coach: Matjaž Hafner.

FužinarSijMetalRavne: Slatinšek, Robida 3, Skudnik 3, Ranc 4, Elgert, Repnik, Libnik (L), Jaka Zmagaj, Ručigaj 4, Plesec 4, Podričnik 2, Drevenšek 3, Nace Zmagaj 1, Hribernik (L). Coach: Aljoša Jemec.

The match began in favor of the Ljubljana volleyball team, who dictated the pace with strong serves and solid blocks. Marovt, starting from the outset, scored effectively to lead the team to a 4:1 advantage. The visitors made too many errors in their attacking plays, and their coach Jemec had to call a timeout at 7:2. Fužinar’s players improved afterwards, closing the gap to three points after Zmagaj's ace (10:13). The second half of the set was marred by a high number of errors from both sides, leading to less attractive volleyball. However, the Orange Dragons justified their role as favorites, closing the set calmly in their favor after a strong attack from their Iranian opposite hitter, Golzadeh (25:19).

The second set followed a similar pattern, with ACH Volley starting strong once again. Marovt's powerful serves gave them a seven-point lead (13:6), and the Slovenian champions never allowed the visitors to close the gap. They dominated in all aspects of the game, taking the set at 13 points, with Golzadeh finishing off an excellent play by the Ljubljana team (25:13).

In the third set, we saw more dominance from the home team. They set the tempo from the beginning, steadily increasing their lead with each point. ACH Volley Ljubljana secured a decisive advantage early on with a 6:0 run, pulling ahead 8:1. Coach Hafner gave opportunities to other players, who did not disappoint, leading to a convincing win in the third set. Šen sealed the victory with a powerful diagonal spike, marking another league triumph for the Orange Dragons, 3:0 (25:14).

ACH Volley Ljubljana, coach Matjaž Hafner’s statement:
"I would rate today's match as solid from our side. The opponent has a very young and, for now, inexperienced team. We made too many mistakes at times, but we still managed to bring the match calmly to our favor. More players had the chance to play, which is very important as we need to get into our competitive rhythm as soon as possible."

ACH Volley Ljubljana player Nejc Najdič’s statement:
"A new game and another victory for our team. We can be satisfied with our performance, but we are aware that our play must, and will, improve as the season progresses. We will work hard in training and stay motivated throughout the season."