Hungary won the gold medal at the 2nd Women’s European U15 Championships, played in Szentes.
Today, Hungary edged out Russia (7:6) in the final game. Spain takes home the bronze medal after defeating Greece (9:6) in the third-place match.
Three semifinalists played in the same group of the preliminary round. Hungary, Russia, and Greece finished 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively in Group B. Spain won 1st place in Group A. There were five teams in A, and four in Group B (results of the group stage – here)
Final standings: 1. Hungary, 2. Russia, 3. Spain, 4. Greece, 5. Italy, 6. Croatia, 7. Netherlands, 8. Israel, 9. Serbia.
2021 Women’s European U15 Championships, Szentes
Quarterfinals
Favorites recorded convincing wins in the quarterfinals. As expected, the duel between Italy, which won 2nd place in Group A, and Greece (3rd in Group B) was the most exciting match of the day. At halftime, the Greeks led 6:3. By the middle of the third period, they stretched the margin to five (8:3) and Italy didn’t manage to come back.
Spain – Croatia 16:6 (3:1, 5:2, 4:0, 4:3)
Russia – Israel 22:8 (5:2, 5:3, 4:2, 8:1)
Italy – Greece 8:10 (3:3, 0:2, 4:4, 1:1)
Hungary – Netherlands 12:3 (4:1, 3:0, 1:0, 4:2)
Semifinals
Hungary beat Greece (11:5) to pass the final hurdle to the final, while the other semifinal encounter offered more excitement. The match between Spain, which won the title at the 2019 European U15 Championship, and Russia was an even contest. Three minutes before the end, the score was 8:8. The Russians scored three unanswered goals in the last three minutes for an 11:8 win.
1st – 4th place
Spain – Russia 8:11 (5:4, 1:1, 1:2, 1:4)
Greece – Hungary 5:11 (0:2, 1:2, 2:3, 2:4)
5th – 8th place
Croatia – Israel 13:10 (4:3, 4:4, 1:2, 4:1)
Italy – Netherlands 7:0 (0:0, 3:0, 2:0, 2:0)
Final day
The final match Russia – Hungary was a replay of the derby of Group B. Hungary achieved a comfortable victory in the group phase (15:8), but the final match had a different storyline. Russia took an early 2:0 lead. The hosts leveled at 2:2, but Russia went into the second half with a slim 3:2 advantage. Russia managed to rebuild a 2-goal advantage in the third period (4:2, 5:3). The Hungarians produced a great comeback with three goals in a row in the last 106 seconds of the quarter for a 6:5 lead.
Three minutes before the end, the Hungarians doubled their advantage (7:5). The Russians halved the distance a minute later, but the hosts kept the minimal lead and won the gold medal.
Spain and Greece were in a neck and neck race throughout the first half of the bronze-medal match. At the middle break, it stood 5:5. The Spaniards tightened their defense in the second half and recorded a 9:6 victory.
Final
Russia – Hungary 6:7 (2:0, 1:2, 2:4, 1:1)
Bronze-medal match
Spain – Greece 9:6 (2:2, 3:3, 3:1, 1:0)
For 5th place
Croatia – Italy 10:15 (5:7, 1:3, 2:1, 2:4)
For 7th place
Israel – Netherlands 6:7 (2:1, 1:1, 0:2, 2:1, PSO 1:2)
Standings
1 Hungary
2 Russia
3 Spain
4 Greece
5 Italy
6 Croatia
7 Netherlands
8 Israel
9 Serbia
