After today’s 23rd round matches, a very exciting hunt for fourth place in the regular season in the Italian Serie A1 continues.
Now, Trieste and De Akker share 4th and 5th place. The other two teams that are eyeing the only remaining ticket for the semifinals – Roma Vis Nova and Posillipo – were defeated today.
Neither Trieste nor De Akker recorded an easy win, even though both teams played home games against rivals that are in the lower half of the table.
De Akker hosted Onda Forte. Considering that Onde Forte has collected only five points, it was assumed that De Akker would have an easy task. But Onda Forte didn’t carry the white flag to Bologna. Early in the second period, the visitors had a 3-goal advantage (4:1). At halftime, Onda Forte was one step ahead (5:4). After a few twists and turns in the third quarter, the teams were tied at 9:9. Onda Forte earned a 10:9 lead in the 26th minute. However, De Akker scored the last three goals in the match to record a 12:10 victory. Stefano Luongo was the man of the match. He contributed five goals to De Akker’s win. Nikola Moskov scored three for Onda Forte.
Trieste faced Iren Genova Quinto. The visitors dictated the pace and controlled the result in the first half. Trieste leveled once during the first 16 minutes (2:2). Quinto entered the third quarter leading 5:3. After the middle break, Trieste scored three goals in a row. In the 22nd minute, the hosts took the lead for the first time – 6:5. But the Genoese didn’t say their last word. Quinto leveled at 6:6, 7:7, and 8:8. Trieste secured a 10:8 victory with two goals in the final two and a half minutes. Draskovic and Mezzarobba scored three goals in Trieste’s victory. Panerai scored three for Quinto.
Pro Recco defeated Posillipo after a slow start. The visitors from Naples stunned Pro Recco with a 3:0 lead after the first eight minutes. Pro Recco found its rhythm in the second quarter. The reigning champions leveled in the 13th minute (4:4). By the end of the first half, they earned a 6:4 lead. In the following 16 minutes, they stretched the margin to three – 11:8, with three goals from Francesco Condemi.
Mario Del Basso scored six goals to lead Brescia to a comfortable 21:11 win over Olympic Roma.
Pro Recco and Brescia are still unbeaten and tied in points. Their encounter in the 26th round will probably determine which team secures the top spot before the playoffs. Before that game, Brescia will have a challenging away match in Savona.
Savona, which cemented 3rd place a long time ago, showed no mercy to Roma Vis Nova, beating the team from the capital by eight goals – 17:9. Roma Vis Nova put up a strong fight in the first half, trailing by only two goals before the third period (3:5). Still, the hosts ruled the field in the second half, particularly in a 7:3 fourth quarter. Rocchi, Gullotta and Bruni scored three goals each for Savona.
Catania upset Telimar in the Sicilian derby. Before the final period, Telimar had an 11:9 lead, but Catania scored four unanswered goals in the final eight minutes for a 13:11 victory. Yusuke Inaba scored four goals to help Ortigia beat Florentia 11:5.
2024/25 Italian League, Round 23
De Akker – Onda Forte 12:10 (1:3, 3:2, 5:4, 3:1)
Trieste – Iren Genova Quinto 10:8 (1:2, 2:3, 4:1, 3:2)
Olympic Roma – Brescia 11:21 (1:6, 2:4, 3:6, 5:5)
Pro Recco – Posillipo 11:8 (0:3, 6:1 2:2, 3:2)
Savona – Roma Vis Nova 17:9 (3:2, 2:1, 5:3, 7:3)
Catania – Telimar 13:11 (3:4, 4:3, 2:4, 4:0)
Florentia – Ortigia 5:11 (2:2, 1:2, 2:2, 0:5)
1. Pro Recco 23 – 67
2. Brescia 23 – 67
3. Savona 23 – 60
4. Trieste 23 – 40
5. De Akker 23 – 40
6. Roma Vis Nova 23 – 37
7. Posillipo 23 – 34
8. Ortigia 23 – 29
9. Telimar 23 – 24
10. Quinto 23 – 23
11. Florentia 23 – 22
12. Olympic Roma 23 – 15
13. Catania 23 – 7
14. Onda Forte 23 – 5
