Snow Volleyball News
At the CEV European Tour event held in Prato Nevoso, Italy, on Sunday, March 31st, both the Italian women`s team and the Polish men`s team achieved significant victories. The Italian women`s squad, consisting of Anna Dalmazzo, Sara Breidenbach, and Sofia Arcaini, triumphed over Turkey with a 2-1 scoreline in the final. Similarly, the Polish men`s team, featuring Piotr Groszek, Michal Matyja, Karol Szczepanik, and Mikolaj Kaczmarek, secured a decisive 2-0 win against France in their final match.
Men`s Tournament: Poland Claims Gold Against France
The final day of the tournament commenced with the men`s quarterfinals and women`s semi-finals. One of the most closely contested matches in the quarterfinals saw Poland overcome Italy 10. After dropping the first set 10-15, the Polish team fought back to win the next two sets 19-17 and 15-13. Elsewhere, Italy 2 had a straightforward win against Uruguay, as did France against Switzerland. The quarterfinal stage also featured an Italian derby where Italy 1 defeated Italy 6.
However, the journey for the Italian champions Berger, Burgmann, and Seeber ended in the semi-finals when they were defeated by Poland. Shortly after, Italy 2 (Di Risio, Camozzi, and Geromin) were eliminated by a formidable French team. In the match for the bronze medal, Italy 1 emerged victorious over Italy 2.
The men`s gold medal match saw France take an early lead in the first set, going up 9-6. Piotr Groszek then spearheaded a Polish comeback, helping his team take the lead before scoring the winning point for a 15-12 set victory. France again established a lead in the second set at 7-4. However, a strong collective performance allowed Poland to rally once more. A crucial error by the French team handed the decisive point and the gold medal to Poland.
Women`s Tournament: Italian “Queens” Win Home Title
In the women`s semi-finals, the Italian champions Breidenbach, Arcaini, and Dalmazzo comfortably secured their place in the final by defeating Hungary 2 with set scores of 15-8 and 15-9. Both Breidenbach and Dalmazzo were instrumental in this victory, each contributing 9 points. The other semi-final saw the Turkish team of Yalcin, Celebi, Sencel, and Sahin face the Czech Republic. Despite the Czechs getting off to an excellent start and leading 6-3, Turkey`s overall strength, both individually and as a team, allowed them to win in straight sets.
The women`s final began with Turkey showing great form, quickly building a 4-0 lead, with Sencel performing particularly well. They extended their advantage to 13-9. Sara Breidenbach helped Italy fight back with effective blockouts and aces, but Yalcin secured the first set for Turkey with a 15-12 win. The second set saw a shift in momentum, boosted by two aces from Sofia Arcaini. Turkey made several errors, and another powerful serve from Arcaini sealed the set 15-6 for Italy, leveling the match at 1-1. With their rhythm and consistency restored, and Dalmazzo playing almost flawlessly, Italy dominated the final moments to clinch the decisive third set and secure the victory on home snow.
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Finley Blackwood 
Jasper Thornfield