Pro Recco, Ortigia, Brescia, and Telimar Palermo qualified for the Final Four of the Italian Cup, which will be played in January (29-30).
The second stage of the Italian Cup started today. On Day 1, two rounds were played in both groups. The listed four clubs recorded two wins each, and they earned F4 berths.
Tomorrow’s Round 3 will see the decisive matches for the top positions in the groups.
2020/21 Italian Cup, Stage 2, Day 1
Group E (Savona)
Round 1
Ortigia – Roma 14:5 (5:0, 4:1, 3:1, 4:3)
Ortigia: Gallo 4, Cassia 1, Condemi 1, Rocchi 1, Di Luciano 1, Ferrero 1, Giacoppo 1, Mirarchi 1, Rossi 1, Vidovic 1, Napolitano 1.
Roma Nuoto: Ciotti 1, F. Faraglia 1, P. Faraglia 1, Voncina 1, Casasola 1.
RN Savona – Pro Recco 7:17 (3:4, 2:3, 1:4, 1:6)
Savona: Bruni 3, Patchaliev 1, Rizzo 1, Campopiano 1, Fondelli 1.
Pro Recco: F. Di Fulvio 2, Mandic 2, Figlioli 2, Younger 2, Echenique 2, Ivovic 2, Figari 2, Luongo 2, Velotto 1.
Round 2
Pro Recco – Roma 22:1 (4:1, 5:0, 4:0, 9:0)
Pro Recco: Younger 5, Echenique 5, S. Luongo 3, Hallock 2, F. Di Fulvio 1, Mandic 1, Figlioli 2, N. Presciutti 1, Dobud 1, Figari 1.
Roma Nuoto: F. Faraglia 1.
Ortigia – Savona 11:9 (1:0, 2:4, 3:4, 5:1)
Ortigia: Gallo 4, Giacoppo 3, Cassia 1, Vidovic 2, Napolitano 1.
Savona: Fondelli 3, Bruni 3, Vuskovic 2, Patchaliev 1.
Pro Recco and Ortigia were firm favorites in the group in Savona. The two teams didn’t let Roma and Savona surprise them. However, Savona didn’t surrender easily in both matches.
Ortigia easily beat Roma in the first match of the day.
Pro Recco started slowly. Savona kept up with the favorites in the first half of the match. After the middle break, Pro Recco found its rhythm and cruised to a win.
In the evening session, Recco convincingly beat Roma. Recco opened the match with three goals. Roma scored its only goal in the middle of the first quarter. After that, Recco produced a 19:0 series. Ben Hallock debuted for Pro Recco in this game. The American center-forward scored two goals in his first game for the best Italian team. Australian Aaron Younger, who celebrated his 29th birthday today, found the net five times. Gonzalo Echenique also scored five goals.
Ortigia earned a 1:0 lead in the match against Savona. But, the hosts controlled the match in the middle two quarters and they entered the last period with an 8:6 lead. Ortigia opened the final period with three goals to turn around a 2-goal deficit to a 9:8 lead. Savona equalized (9:9), but Ortigia was a better team in the final minutes. The Sicilians scored two goals for an 11:9 win and for the F4 berth.
Standings: 1. Pro Recco 6, 2. Ortigia 6, 3. Savona 0, 4. Roma 0.
Round 3: Savona – Roma, Pro Recco – Ortigia.
Group F (Palermo)
Round 1
Posillipo-Brescia 6:16 (2:4, 2:4, 0:4, 2:4)
Posillipo: M. Di Martire 2, G. Mattiello 1, Silvestri 1, Bertoli 1, Baraldi 1.
Brescia: Dolce 4, Alesiani 3, C. Presciutti 2, T. Gianazza 1, Balzarini 2, Vlachopoulos 2, E. Di Somma 1, N. Gitto 1.
Quinto – Telimar 7:9 (1:2, 2:3, 1:3, 3:1)
Iren Quinto: Panerai 2, M.Gitto 2, Mugnaini 1, M. Guidi 1, Bittarello 1.
Telimar: Del Basso 4, Galioto 1, Vlahovic 1, Marziali 1, Lo Cascio 1, Damonte 1.
Round 2
Telimar – Posillipo 12:11 (3:1, 4:4, 3:4, 2:2)
Telimar: Damonte 7, Dal Basso 1, Galioto 1, Vlahovic 1, Lo Dico 2.
CN Posillipo: M. Di Martire 4, Baraldi 2, Iodice 1, Parella 1, Silvestri 1, Bertoli 1, Saccoia 1.
Brescia – Quinto 15:3 (3:1, 5:1, 4:0, 3:1)
Brescia: Dolce 3, Balzarani 3, Nikolaidis 2, C. Presciutti 1, T. Gianazza 1, Alesiani 1, Vlachopoulos 2, E. Di Somma 1, N. Gitto 1.
Iren Quinto: Panerai 1, Gavazzi 1, Nora 1.
As expected, Brescia recorded two big wins on Day 1 and secured its spot at the Final Four. Telimar, a surprise team of the 2020/21 Italian Cup, joined Brescia after victories in two hard-fought battles.
The encounter between Posillipo and Brescia opened the competition program. By halftime, Brescia went 8:4 up and didn’t slow down during the second half of the match.
Host Telimar defeated Quinto in the second game of Round 1. The home side led throughout the match. Before the last period, Telimar built a safe 8:4 advantage.
After beating Quinto, Telimar faced Posillipo Naples. The Palermo-based side was always ahead, but Posillipo didn’t let the hosts build a big gap. In the second quarter, Telimar went 7:4 up, but Posillipo was able to come back. Posillipo water polo players equalized in their first possession in the final quarter (10:10). Telimar responded with two goals. Lo Dico scored both. He found the net for 12:10 with 01:48 minutes to go. After that, Posillipo couldn’t come back once more. The Naples-based side scored just a consolation goal 16 seconds before the end. Luca Damonte topped the scorers’ list with seven goals.
Telimar, the 13th-placed team in the canceled 2019/20 Italian League, continued its fantastic series at the start of the season. The Palermo-based side, guided by a new coach Marco Baldineti, has recorded five victories in as many matches in the current season.
Brescia closed the day with another convincing win. They played excellently in defense and left no chance to Iren.
Standings: 1. Brescia 6, 2. Telimar 6, 3. Quinto 0, 4. Posillipo 0.
Round 3: Quinto – Posillipo, Brescia – Telimar
