Luxembourg, November 13, 2018. Germany’s Allianz MTV STUTTGART made it to the pool stage of the 2019 CEV Volleyball Champions League - Women, winning four sets in a row in the return leg at home against last season’s silver medallists of CSM Volei Alba BLAJ. The German side had lost the first match in Romania by 1-3, but managed to recover with an emphatic straight-setter at home, followed by an emphatic Golden Set win, to triumph victorious on Tuesday evening. It was just as thrilling over in France, where Poland’s Budowlani ŁÓDŹ had to come back from a set down twice before overcoming the tough resistance of ASPTT MULHOUSE VB and booking their ticket to the next round. Alba and ASPTT MULHOUSE step down to the next tier in the European Cups to continue playing in the 2019 CEV Volleyball Cup - Women.

Allianz MTV STUTTGART (GER) vs. CSM Volei Alba BLAJ (ROU)
3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-11); Golden Set 15-7

• Among the 1,450 spectators on the stands, there was a block of about 50 fans travelling from Romania and constantly singing throughout the match to help create a very nice and friendly atmosphere at the SCHARRena.
• With Paige Tapp serving, Allianz achieved a seven-point run to take a comfortable lead on the way to a 25-19 win of the first set.
• Alba started the second set with a 4-1 lead, but Allianz fought back to tie it at 9-9. After 12-12 the home side regained control and held on it through the end. Krystal Rivers finished the set at 25-17 with an ace.
• Alba had serious problems with their reception in the third set, while Allianz had a strong performance in blocking and defence. With a series of good serves from Jana-Franziska Poll, the German squad marched to an 8-0 opening before cruising on to a 25-11 close of the third set and forcing their Romanian opponents to a Golden Set.
• Everybody was nervous before the Golden Set thriller, but while the home team managed to keep their cool and continued fighting, the visiting side resorted to a lot of complaining about the referees’ decisions with coach Darko Zakoc ending up with yellow and red cards. Allianz MTV’s players already knew it was their evening and with an incredible team effort mastered a 15-7 win.
• Paige Tapp was the best scorer of the night with a total of 18 points (including nine kill blocks) over the four sets. Krystal Rivers added 14 to Allianz MTV STUTTGART’s tally. CSM Volei Alba BLAJ’s Katerina Zhidkova also scored 14 times to top the charts on her team’s side of the net.
• The team from Stuttgart will play in Pool A alongside Turkey’s VakifBank ISTANBUL, France's BEZIERS VB and Bulgaria's Maritza PLOVDIV.
• In the eighthfinals of the CEV Cup, Alba will face the winner of the two-game series between Bulgaria’s Levski SOFIA and Czech Republic’s VK PROSTEJOV.

Ioannis Athanasopoulos, coach of Allianz MTV STUTTGART: "I would like to congratulate all my 13 players, my staff, the management, the sponsors, the fans... This is a victory we all achieved together. We delivered the perfect game. Everybody was enjoying watching Volleyball tonight. And I am speechless, I have nothing to say. I must enjoy the moment."

Paige Tapp, player of Allianz MTV STUTTGART: "Finally the team chemistry is kicking in. We had so much fun on the court and we let them make the mistakes. Our journey in Europe continues."

Darko Zakoc, coach of CSM Volei Alba BLAJ: "Congratulations to Allianz MTV STUTTGART! For me, this is a disaster. I do not have anything else to say."

Lora Kitipova, player of CSM Volei Alba BLAJ: "We played very poorly. That’s why we lost. It is totally our fault. Even with the bad referee decisions in the Golden Set, it is our fault, because we made it possible, that the team from Stuttgart were even able to reach the Golden Set."

Highlights des Spiels bei SWR Sport
Komplettes Spiel in der SWR Mediathek anschauen
Artikel in den Stuttgarter Nachrichten

Hinweis in eigener Sache:

• Aufgrund der Teilnahme an der Gruppenphase der CEV Volleyball-Champions League muss das Heimspiel in der 1. Volleyball-Bundesliga gegen NawaRo Straubing (21.11.2018) verlegt werden. Neuer Spieltermin wird noch bekanntgegeben, bereits gekaufte Karten bleiben gültig. 
• Weiter wird das DVV-Pokal Viertelfinale gegen Wiesbaden verlegt. Neuer Spielbeginn ist Sonntag, 25. November 2018, 15 Uhr. Bereits gekaufte Karten bleiben gültig.
• Die Heimspiele in der Champions League finden vsl. wie folgt statt: 19.12.18, 19 Uhr (Beziers VB), 23.1.19, 19 Uhr (Maritza Plovdiv) und 20.2.19, 19 Uhr (Vakifbank Istanbul)
• Tickets gibt es vsl. ab nächste Woche
• Für das erste CL-Auswärtsspiel nächste Woche in Istanbul bieten wir eine Fanreise an, Infos folgen heute im Laufe des Tages