An encounter between Posillipo and Roma Vis Nova was the highlight of the 18th round of the Italian championship, as both teams aimed for fourth place. Posillipo won the points with a 10:8 victory and kept its hopes alive for a spot in the playoff semifinals. At the same time, Posillipo helped Trieste return to fourth place.
Roma led 3:1 after the first quarter. Posillipo leveled at 3:3 in the middle of the second period. Roma’s Viskovic put the visitors ahead with a power-play goal but Brguljan tied it up at 4:4 with a penalty shot at the end of the first half. The teams traded the goals in the third period. Posillipo took the lead three times, Roma leveled twice, but the visitors had no answer after Bertoli found the net for 7:6 late into the quarter. The visitors missed a great chance to level the score early in the fourth period, as they missed a penalty shot. Radulovic doubled the hosts’ advantage to 8:6, with an extra player goal and Posillipo maintained a 2-goal difference until the end. Bertoli and Brguljan led Posillipo with three goals each.Ciotti, Viskovic, Antonucci scored two for Roma.
Roma Vis Nova and Posillipo have won 31 points, but Roma is ahead of Posillipo right now, because it beat the Naples-based team by three goals in the first half of the season. However, both teams have chances to reach the playoffs. They are just three points behind 4th-placed Trieste.
Trieste dropped to fifth place on Wednesday after losing to Roma Vis Nova. Today, Trieste water polo players trashed Onda Forte 18:8, which, combined with Roma’s defeat, returned them to fourth position. Vuk Draskovic was unstoppable, scoring six goals for Trieste, which led 17:3 early in the fourth quarter. Onda Forte left without goal getter Nikola Moskov, who was excluded for a violent foul. That event partially affected the outcome, but Trieste was a heavy favorite.
Pro Recco and Brescia showed no mercy to the Sicilian clubs. Pro Recco triumphed over Telimar 20:7, powered by four goals each from Francesco Di Fulvio and Matteo Iocchi Gratta. Brescia earned an away 21:9 victory over Catania, with Del Basso leading the charge by scoring four goals.
Savona started slowly against Ortigia. After a 0:1 first quarter, the third-placed team dominated and entered the final period leading 9:3. Ortigia narrowed the gap in the final eight minutes. Savona won 10:7 with only four players getting on the scoresheet. Figlioli, Occhione and Bruni found the net three times each.
De Akker hosted Florentia and left the pool empty-handed. Now, reaching 4th place and qualifying for the playoffs seems impossible for De Akker. The hosts had a 3-goal advantage at the beginning of the second quarter (5:2), but they couldn’t keep the lead. In the fourth quarter, Florentia went two steps ahead (10:8). After that, De Akker scored only a consolation goal.
2024/25 Italian League, Round
Posillipo – Roma Vis Nova 10:8 (1:3, 3:1, 3:2, 3:2)
Savona – Ortigia 10:7 (0:1, 4:2, 5:0, 1:4)
Pro Recco – Telimar 20:7 (5:2, 4:3, 7:0, 4:2)
Catania – Brescia 9:21 (5:6, 0:6, 2:6, 2:3)
Trieste – Onda Forte 18:8 (4:2, 6:1, 4:0, 4:5)
De Akker – Florentia 9:10 (4:2, 3:4, 1:3, 1:1)
Iren Genova Quinto – Olympic Roma 10:9 (1:2, 2:3, 4:1, 3:3)
Standings
1.Pro Recco 18 – 52
2. Brescia 18 – 52
3. Savona 18 – 45
4. Treste 18 – 34
5. Roma Vis Nova 18 – 31
6. Posillipo 18 – 31
7. De Akker 18 – 28
8. Ortigia 18 – 23
9. Florentia 18 – 18
10. Telimar 18 – 17
11. Quinto 18 – 16
12. Olympic Roma 18 – 11
13. Onda Forte 18 – 5
14. Catania 18 – 4
