The playoffs are in full swing across most European countries, while Knack Roeselare can proudly add a new trophy to its already extensive collection: the very first Bene Conference title.

In Italy, Britt Herbots (4 points – 17% attack – 41% reception, 29% perfect) and Scandicci were knocked out of the title race after three defeats against Milan, where Laura Heyrman did not take the court. She might still be called up for the final, where Milan awaits the winner of Conegliano vs Novara – a semi-final series still to be concluded. An impressive 5,240 spectators filled the stands in Milan.

One standout result: Novara secured a 0-3 victory away at Blaj and claimed the CEV Cup, largely thanks to MVP and standout player Tatiana Tolok (22 points at 68%), the 22-year-old Russian. This triumph is historic, as it means Novara has now won every possible European club title: Champions League (2019), Challenge Cup (2024), and now the CEV Cup!

In Japan, Queenseis Kariya (Kaja Grobelna 17 points – 32%) won 2-3 against Denso Kukushima, only to lose 3-2 to the same opponent a day later (Kaja 10 points – 27%). Her team finishes fourth in the regular season. Marvelous Osaka ends the season in second place with two wins over Kawasaki (3-2, 3-1), though Lise Van Hecke didn’t see court time.

In Germany, Schwerin made its title intentions clear with a commanding 3-0 win against Sühl (Lara Nagels 2 points – 50%) in the first semi-final. Stuttgart (without Pauline Martin and with limited minutes from the recovering Charlotte Krenicky) also swept Dresden 3-0, despite 8 points (60%) from Nathalie Lemmens.

In France, Venelles claimed the first quarter-final against Béziers 3-1, with an outstanding performance from Britt Rampelberg (50% reception, 42% perfect).

In Greece, Ilka Van de Vyver led her team, Paok Thessaloniki, to a dominant 3-0 win (25-23, 25-21, 25-20) over Thiros in the playoff semi-final.

Sam Deroo back in Russian final
On the men’s side, Sam Deroo is just one step away from another Russian title with Zenit Kazan, after three consecutive 3-0 wins in the semi-final against Dynamo LO from Sosnovy Bor – a team that had previously eliminated Dinamo Moscow. Zenit Kazan will likely face Zenit Saint Petersburg, which leads 2-0 in its semi-final against Belgorod.

In Italy, Trentino won the first semi-final 3-2 against Piacenza, while Perugia swept Civitanova 3-0.

In Poland, Kedzierzyn is relegated to the 5th place match against Rzeszow after suffering back-to-back 3-0 defeats to Lublin (Igor Grobelny 6 points – 31% and 7 points – 29%). The semi-final matchups are Jastrzebski vs Lublin and Warsaw vs Zawiercie.

In Spain, Guaguas (Tomas Rousseaux 14 points) came back from 2-0 down against Manacor but eventually fell in the tiebreak against a red-hot Cuban, Omar Calvi. This was the first semi-final of the playoffs.

In Germany, Berlin (without Simon Plaskie) seems to be cruising to the final after a comfortable 3-0 win over Giesen. Things were tighter in the other semi-final, where Friedrichshafen lost 2-3 to Lüneburg.

In Azerbaijan, Seppe Baetens is just one match away from the playoffs with Murov Baku, currently sitting in second place.

In Denmark, Dries Hoeyberghs and Nordenskov won the first match for third place 3-0 against Elite.

And in Croatia, Ribola Kastela (Simon Vlahovic 4 points – 30%) lost the first semi-final match against Osijek in straight sets: 0-3.

(Article compiled by Marcel Coppens)
Photo: https://savinodelbenevolley.it/