Ekipe end Roma’s unbeaten streak on final matchday

March 23, 2023

Ekipe deny Roma of an unbeaten first phase. Photo: Ekipe Orizzonte.

The regular season in Italy has ended.

With the first phase of the season coming to a climax, Roma so very nearly stayed unbeaten. However, the reigning champions Ekipe sent a very clear message to the Romans: that they are still ready to fight tooth and nail to retain their title. Ekipe took victory in the top of the league derby against Roma 9-8.

The defeat for Roma does not deny them the top spot in the league heading into the play-offs; alongside second placed Plebiscito, the top two teams automatically qualify for the semi-finals. In the quarter-finals, Ekipe will face Bogliasco, while Rapallo will meet Trieste.

Bologna needed a miracle to avoid the drop, but could only fall 11-7 to Trieste. Elsewhere, Como won the derby lower part against Brizz 6-7, so Brizz will therefore face Florentia in the ‘play-outs’.

2022/23 Woman’s Italian League, Day 18

Ekipe – Roma 9-8 (3-2, 1-2, 2-3, 3-1)

Ekipe: L. Celona, B. Halligan 2, C. Grasso, G. Viacava, V. Gant 2, D. Bettini 2, V. Palmieri 1, C. Marletta 2, G. Gagliardi, A. Williams, A. Longo, M. Leone, G. Condorelli.

Roma: E. Eichelberger, M. Misiti, G. Galardi, Carosi, S. Giustini, C. Ranalli 2, D. Picozzi 2, C. Tabani, C. Nardini, L. Di Claudio, A. Cocchiere 2, Andrews 2, Galbani.

Ekipe emerged victorious in the derby match against Roma with a final score of 9-8. Ekipe took the lead in the first quarter with a goal from Halligan. However, Roma responded with two goals, taking the lead 1-2. But the hosts were determined to make a comeback and managed to score two more goals, taking the lead 3-2 by the end of the quarter. In the second period, Picozzi of Roma scored two goals, bringing the game to a tie at halftime, 4-4. Roma took advantage and scored three goals while only allowing two for Ekipe, bringing the score to 6-7. The fourth and final quarter saw the White Caps of Ekipe make a series with three goals in a row, giving them a significant advantage of 9-7 with only five minutes remaining. Although the visitors managed to score one more goal before the end of the match, it was not enough to secure a victory, and Ekipe emerged as the winner of the derby with a final score of 9-8.

Brizz – Como 6-7 (0-2, 1-1, 3-4, 2-0)

Brizz: H. Santapaola, F. Sapienza 3, A. Vitaliano, A. Mascari, A. Arcidiacono, M. Spampinato, C. Cappello 1, I. Pane, N. Sasover, V. Santoro, M. Giuffrida 1, A. Milicevic 1, F. Paladino.

Como: G. Frassinelli, M. Romano’, M. Fisco 3, J. Tedesco, E. Borg 1, A. Giraldo, R. Bianchi, A. Iannarelli, B. Romano’, G. Lanzoni 3, A Cassano, A. Radaeli, A. Volpato.

The match between Brizz and Como, which took place at the derby lower part of the table, witnessed a strong start from Como as they took a huge advantage and led with a score of 0-3 within the first 9 minutes of the game. However, Brizz managed to reduce the difference in the second quarter, with Milicevic scoring a goal and bringing the score to 1-3. The third period of the game was high-scoring, with both teams scoring a total of seven goals and the score standing at 4-7 at the end of the period. In the last eight minutes of the game, Brizz attempted to make a comeback but was unable to score enough goals to equalize the score. As a result, Como managed to hold on to their lead and emerged victorious with a final score of 6-7.

Bologna – Trieste 7-11 (0-3, 2-2, 2-4, 3-2)

Bologna: O. Sesena, A. Repetto 1, V. Perna 1, G. Gnassi, A. Mazzia, L. Redaelli, C. Morselli, M. Lepore 2, M. Marchetti 2, F. De Vincentiis, E. Altamura, F. Toth 1, M. Allotta.

Trieste: F. Sparano, D. Vomastkova 1, E. De March, B. Bozzetta, G. Marussi, L. Cergol 3, G. Klatowski 1, F. Colletta 3, G. Zizza, J. Vukovic, I. Riccioli 2, R. Santapaola 1, G. Gregorutti.

Trieste dominated Bologna taking a comfortable victory with a final score of 7-11. The visitors started strong, scoring four consecutive goals to take an early lead. Bologna fought back with two goals of their own, but Trieste managed to score another goal just before halftime to extend their lead to 2-5. In the third period, Trieste pulled away even further, scoring four goals to Bologna’s for 4-9. In the last eight minutes of the match, Bologna was only able to reduce the deficit to 7-11, which was the final score.

Florentia – Bogliasco 5-9 (0-3, 3-2, 2-4, 0-0)

Florentia: C. Banchelli, M. Pantani, C. Nencha, E. Cordovani 2, G. Gasparri, N. Vittori, L. Nesti, B. Mugnai, M. Osti, B. Merli 1, I. Landi 1, Gattini 1, G. Pellegrino.

Bogliasco: V. Uccella, A. Riccio 1, P. Di Maria 1, G. Cuzzupe’ 3, A. Mauceri, G. Millo 3, B. Rosta, R. Rogondino, M. Paganello, G. Cavallini, M. Carpaneto, D. Spampinato 1, M. Oberti.

Bogliasco dominated the first period, scoring three goals in quick succession. However, in the second period, Florentia managed to keep up with them, trading goals back and forth, but they were only able to reduce the lead to 3-5 by halftime. The third period saw Bogliasco increase their lead to 5-9, which ultimately proved to be the final score as no goals were scored in the last period of the match.

Plebiscito – Rapallo 11-7 (2-0, 3-2, 2-1, 4-4)

Plebiscito: L. Teani, L. Barzon 1, V. Valyi 4, G. Citino 2, E. Queirolo 2, A. Casson, A. Millo 1, S. Dario, H. Mckelvey, C. Meggiato, S. Centanni 1, Al Masri, C. Giacon.

Rapallo: S. Caso, N. Zanetta 2, U. Gitto 2, I. Rossi, D. Carrasco Leyva 1, L. Vanelo, G. Gnetti, B. Cabona 1, S. Costa, Marcialis, G. Cerlani, G. Apilongo 1.

In Padova, Plebiscito emerged victorious against Rapallo with a final score of 11-7. The game got off to a strong start for Plebiscito, with the team scoring four goals in the first nine minutes of play. Despite this early setback, Rapallo managed to keep up with their opponents and both teams scored two goals each in the remainder of the first half, resulting in a score of 5-2 at halftime. The third period saw Plebiscito pull ahead even further, with a score of 7-3. In the final quarter, Plebiscito managed to maintain their advantage and prevented Rapallo from closing the gap. The game ended with a final score of 11-7 in favor of Plebiscito.