Italian powerhouses gear up for European battles

February 6, 2023

Aurora Longo of Ekipe. Photo: Ekipe Orizzonte.

The top teams in Italy sent a powerful message this weekend as they prepared for their European showdowns in seven days’ time. Orizzonte and SIS Roma both dominated their opponents, with Orizzonte cruising past Brizz in the Catania derby and Roma securing a 22-5 victory with six goals from Chiara Tabani.

Plebiscito showed their defensive prowess in Florence, shutting out their opponents for three quarters and triumphing 17-2. Meanwhile, 2013 champions Rapallo are edging closer to securing the fourth spot, with an impressive 16-12 win over Trieste.

In a nail-biting finish, Bogliasco held off Bologna to secure an important 7-6 win.

Now, all eyes are on the European arena, as SIS Roma and Orizzonte take on Sabadell and Glyfada in the Champions League, while Plebiscito carries a two-goal lead to Lille.

Rapallo Pallanuoto 16 – 12 Pallanuoto Trieste (4-2, 2-4, 6-4, 4-2)

Rapallo: S. Caso, N. Zanetta 1, U. Gitto 1, I. Rossi, D. Carrasco Leyva, L. Vanelo, G. Gnetti, B. Cabona 4, S. Costa, Marcialis 3, R. Bianconi 5 , G. Apilongo 2.

Trieste: L. Sparano, D. Vomastkova 1, E. De March 3, E. Sblattero, G. Marussi, L. Cergol 4, G. Klatowski, F. Colletta 1, G. Zizza, J. Vukovic 3, I Riccioli, R. Santapaola, G. Gregorutti.

Rapallo took a big step in cementing their place in the top four of the Italian A1, seeing off a spirited Trieste, 16-12.

In an entertaining game of fine margins, Rapallo got the better of the third quarter, inspired by three goals from Benedetta Cabona, and that gave them the foothold they needed to see the game through.

Before that, the game had been toing and froing, but neither side could pull away from the other after the first sixteen minutes (6-6).

On target five times for Rapallo was veteran Roberta Bianconi, while Benedetta Cabona weighed in with four scores.

Ekipe Orizzonte 22 – 3 Brizz Nuoto (6-0, 4-1, 4-1, 8-1)
Ekipe: L. Celona, B. Halligan 2, G. Oliva, G. Viacava 2, V. Gant, D. Bettini 2, V. Palmieri 2, C. Marletta 1, G. Gagliardi 4, A. Williams 2, A. Longo 4, M. Leone 3, G. Condorelli.

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

Ekipe Orizzonte were in no mood to mess about in the Catania derby, putting Brizz to the sword, 22-3.

Gaia Gagliardi (4) and Italian youngsters Aurora Longo (4) and Moreno Leone (3) led the reigning champions with the goals, in a game they never looked like losing.

A 6-0 opening quarter for Martina Miceli’s team set the tone for the one-sided contest. Ekipe then led 10-1 at the break, with Alessia Arcidiacono the only successful Brizz attacker to find a breakthrough in the first half.

Eight straight scores in the last period, which featured double-strikes from Aurora Longo and Gaia Gagliardi ensured the scoreline reflected Ekipe’s dominance.

Brizz’s losing streak extends to five games.

Bogliasco 1951 7 – 6 RN Bologna (1-2, 4-1, 1-0, 1-3)

Bogliasco: V. Uccella, A. Riccio, P. Di Maria, G. Cuzzupe’ 1, A. Mauceri 1, G. Millo 1, B. Rosta, R. Rogondino 2, M. Paganello 1, G. Cavallini , M. Carpaneto, D. Spampinato 1, A. Sokhna.

Bologna:O. Sesena, A. Repetto 3, V. Perna, F. Lekness 3, A. Mazzia, L. Redaelli, C. Cappello, C. Morselli, M. Lepore, M. Marchetti, F. De Vincentiis, E. Farneti, L. Guidoreni.

Despite a big effort from Bologna, Bogliasco held out for a vital three points in a narrow 7-6 victory over Bologna.

A strong all-round team performance, at least for three quarters, gave Bogliasco the victory they craved, but the performance was not stress free, with Bologna putting real pressure on their hosts in the closing moments of the match.

Mario Sinatra’s side had the better of the first half, leading 2-1, and then 5-2 at the break. Bogliasco might well have put the game beyond the reach of their opponents had Bologna’s keeper, Olimpia Sesena, not made an excellent penalty stop from Giulia Cuzzupe.

And trailing by four scores into the last period, Bologna mounted their tenacious but ill-fated comeback. A brace for Rae Lekness and a strike from Anna Repetto (both to bag their hat-tricks) really made things tense in the dying seconds, but Bogliasco held out for the win.

The win for Bogliasco keeps them in 6th, but takes them level on points with Trieste in 5th (both on fifteen).

RN Florentia 2 – 17 Plebiscito Padova (0-3, 0-3, 0-6, 2-5)

Florentia: C. Banchelli, E. Gabelli, L. Lepore, C. Barbieri, Rossi, C. Nencha, L. Nesti, B. Mugnai 1, M. Osti, B. Merli, I. Landi 1, Gattini, G Pilgrim.

Padova: L. Teani, L. Barzon 2, V. Valyi 2, G. Citino 1, E. Queirolo 3, A. Casson 2, A. Millo 3, S. Dario, H. Mckelvey 2, C. Meggiato , S. Centanni 1, L. Tognon 1, C. Giacon.

A clean first three quarters from Plebiscito Padova propelled them to a resounding 17-2 victory in Florentia.

Nine players jumped on the goal-scoring wagon for Stefano Posterivo’s side, who will be as pleased with how his team applied themselves in offence and defence in equal measure.

Back to back 3-0 quarters put Plebiscito in the driving seat, before a further 6-0 third period, with six different scorers, served only to terminate the game as a competitive spectacle.

Plebiscito have work to do this week in the Euro Cup, as they only take a two score lead into their quarter final second leg in Lille. However, they will enjoy their time in Lille if they can replicate the defense they produced against Florence.

Como Nuoto 5 – 22 SIS Roma (1-4, 0-9, 2-5, 2-4)

Como: G. Frassinelli, M. Romano’, M. Fisco, J. Tedesco, E. Borg, A. Giraldo 2, R. Bianchi, A. Iannarelli, B. Romano’ 1, G. Lanzoni 2, A Cassano, F. Cattaneo, A. Volpato.

Roma: E. Eichelberger, M. Misiti 1, G. Galardi 1, Carosi, S. Giustini 3, C. Ranalli 2, D. Picozzi 2, C. Tabani 6, C. Nardini 1, L. Di Claudio 1, A. Coachman 4, Andrews 1, Galbani.

Table-toppers, SIS Roma, had no trouble in Como, breezing past their opponents 22-5.

The league leaders, led by six goals from the league’s top-goal scorer, Chiara Tabani, made short work of their hosts, which included a formidable 9-0 second quarter.

On reflection, Como did well to keep Roma to 4-1 in the first quarter, but four goals from Agnese Cocchiere, and a double score from Tabani gave Como no chance.

Como, to their credit, never stopped plugging away, but the second half was nothing but a formality, which gave Sofia Giustini the chance to complete her hat-trick.

Roma continue to remain unbeaten in all competitions this season, a feat that includes twelve wins from twelve in the the Italian A1.

This win is just a warm-up for Roma, who face a much tougher challenge next weekend in the Champions League. They travel to Sabadell for what promises to be one of the most exciting games of the season.