Slovenski prvaki suvereni na uvodni tekmi državnega prvenstva

In the match of the 2nd round of the Sportklub First Volleyball League, we witnessed a showdown at the Tivoli Arena between ACH Volley Ljubljana and the returnees to the premier league, the Krka volleyball team. In a not-so-attractive match, characterized by many missed serves, the Dragons justified their role as favorites and celebrated their first victory of the season with a score of 3:0.

Ljubljana - Tivoli Sports Hall, 130 spectators, referees: Kramar, Zajec.

ACH Volley Ljubljana : Krka 3 : 0 (21, 18, 25).

ACH Volley Ljubljana: Mejal, Kržič, Šket, Najdič, Marovt, Šen, Koncilja, Kovačič (L), Gjorgiev 16, Sešek. Coach: Radovan Gačič

Krka: Erpič G., Kocjančič, Kosmina, Bregar, Verdinek (L), Kožar, Pulko, Erpič U., Lindič, Kern, Rojnik, Jakše (L) Coach: Jernej Rojc

The beginning of the match was marked by a high number of errors in the serves by both teams, with the initiative taken by the visitors from Novo mesto, leading to a score of 7:8. After an excellent defensive action by Captain Gjorgiev and a clever finish by Najdič and Pokeršnik, the Ljubljana team took the lead for the first time (9:8) and extended it until the middle of the first set (17:14). At the score of 18:15, coach Rojc of the visiting team called a timeout, but the situation on the court remained unchanged. An excellent serve by the young Najdič, who played the role of the first setter in today's match, and a mistake by the visitors in the attack, meant a four-point lead for the Dragons (20:16). Krka's volleyball players missed three consecutive opening serves in the closing moments of the opening set, with Rojnik's final mistake securing the victory for the Ljubljana team (25:21).

The start of the second set was dominated by the multiple national and cup champions, who, thanks to a powerful serve, made their job easier in block-defense and took the lead with 8:1. Even a timeout requested by the Novo mesto team did not work, as the players of ACH Volley Ljubljana continued with a powerful pace of play. Coach Rojc then shuffled the Krka lineup quite a bit, bringing in much-needed energy. The guests managed to close the gap to three points (14:11), but the Ljubljana team did not allow more and, after a strong attack by Koncilja through the middle, led 21:14. Mejal, who replaced Najdič, secured a 2:0 lead in sets with two aces (25:18).

Rojnik's challenging serves gave Krka the lead at the start of the third set (2:4), but the Ljubljana volleyball players quickly responded and leveled the score at the seventh point. The excellent Rojnik was again in the spotlight and provided the guests with the highest lead in the match with a successful attack (7:10). After another successful attacking action by Rojnik for 13:8, the home team's coach called a timeout. The players from Novo Mesto still maintained a high level of play and managed to reduce the number of their own mistakes, which was reflected in the score. After an excellent defensive action by Verdinek and a finish by Rojnik, they took the lead with 19:15. After Gačič's second timeout, the orange dragons closed in to just one point behind (20:21), yet Krka's volleyball players managed to get the first two match points. However, the Ljubljana team made a comeback, with Gjorgiev's ace and Koncilja's block securing the victory for the orange dragons with a score of 3:0.

Statement by ACH Volley Ljubljana coach, Radovan Gačič: "An excellent start to the season, just as we wanted it. The result allowed us to rotate a lot during most of the match, and everyone met the set expectations. While we looked quite confident in the first two sets, we had a drop in performance in the third set, which the Krka players took advantage of. Nevertheless, we showed character and managed to bring the match to our favor without a scratch."