Terrassa qualify ahead of De Zaan; Budapest stays Green

Late drama, intense derby games, and a plethora of goals made for a thrilling conclusion to the group stage of the women’s Euro Cup. 

The day’s biggest result came in Group D, where Terrassa upset ZV De Zaan (10-6) and advanced to the quarterfinals at the expense of the Dutch team. In order to advance, Terrassa needed to win by at least three goals, and they did so with a four-goal margin. It was no picnic, though, for the Spanish side, as they had to fight hard after falling behind by three goals early on. 

Therefore, with Plebiscito thrashing Pacense, 30-3, the Italian’s finished atop of the group, with Terrassa finishing second, ahead of Zaan. 

Meanwhile there were two derby games played out this morning. Ethnikos fought off ZF eger to take a 12-11 victory, and the top spot in Group A, while FTC Telekom will fly back to Budapest with a smile on their faces, having defeated their city rivals, UVSE (10-8). All four were already guaranteed a berth in the final eight, but FTC and Ethnikos will take pride in ending the group-stage unbeaten

The only other team to finish the group stage with three wins from three was Vouliagmeni, who this morning were engaged in a 34-goal bonanza. There was definitely a relaxed feel going into the contest between Vouliagemni and Lille, with both sides knowing they had already secured qualification for the next round. The ensuing game, however, was anything but relaxed, as Vouliagmeni outscored their French hosts 19-15. 

Nice, Mulhouse and ZVL all secured consolation victories against Sirens, Nancy and Spandau respectively, but all six of those teams, along with Pacense and Zaan, brought their European journeys to an end at this stage. 

The quarter-final draw will be made immediately, with the the first of the two-legged ties set to take place in two weeks time.

 

Teams qualified for the Euro Cup quarter-finals

Ethnikos, FTC Telekom, NC Vouliagmeni, Plebiscito Padova, ZF Eger, UVSE, LUC Metropole and CN Terrassa

Group A

After a thrilling match this morning, Ethnikos emerged as the group A victor after coming from behind to defeat ZF Eger 12-11. 

Ioulia Kontoni and captain Foivi Chatzikyriaki both scored hat tricks as Stefanos Leandros’ team prevailed despite only holding the advantage for four minutes of the game overall. 

Large portions of the game were played with Eger in the lead, but they were unable to overcome their Greek opponents. With five minutes left in the game, the Hungarians were leading 9-10, but two quick goals from Foivi Chatzikyriaki and Australian Charlize Andrews gave the Greeks their first lead of the game (12-11), which they went on to defend. 

As a result of their loss, the Hungarians dropped to second place in the group, and Eger took over as group leaders. Both teams had already qualified for the quarter-finals. 

Elsewhere, Nice ensured they had something cheery to take home from their trip to Piraeus, with a 16-4 defeat of Sirens ASC. 

 The French had no trouble finding the goals they needed against the Maltese, jumping to a  5-1, and then a 8-1 lead before the intermission. 

This weekend, Nice’s Ema Vernoux has been incredibly consistent. She has scored five goals in all three preliminary matches in Piraeus, including against the Sirens today.

Despite the win, Nice’s Euro Cup run comes to an end.

Ethnikos 12 – 11 ZF Eger (2-3, 3-2, 4-4, 3-2)

Ethnikos: E. Sotireli, A. Karampetsou, M. Borisova 2, V. Laskaridou, I. Kontoni 4, E. Katsimpri, F. Chatzikyriakaki 3, A. Benekou, M. Rakintzi, E. Kanetidou 1, L. Benekou, C. Andrews 2, A. Bekri

Eger: A. Kiss, P. Jancso, I. Borsi, R. Parkes 2, D. Molnar, Z. Katona 1, S. Szilagyi, D. Czigany, B. Kekesi, F. Bodi, C. Szellak 4, D. Szilagyi 4, M. Dulic

 

Olympic Nice 16 – 4 Sirens ASC Malta (5-1, 3-0, 5-1, 3-2)

Nice: M. Chabrier, L. Vernoux 2, B. Van de Velde, J. Kohli, K. Noy, A. Grass, M. Barbieux 1, V. Tamas, E. Vernoux 5, L. Di Fraja 2, Y. Deschampt 2, I. Di Bartolo, C. Vidal.

Malta:

Standings

1. Ethnikos – 3 – 9pts (Q)
2. ZF Eger – 3 – 6pt (Q)
3. Olympic Nice – 3 – 3pts
4. Sirens ASC Malta – 3 – 0pts

 

Group B

Ferencvaros leads Group B entering the quarterfinals of the Euro Cup after defeating UVSE in a thrilling derby in Mulhouse (10-8). 

It was a remarkably close contest between Hungary’s title rivals, but in the end, Fradi’s physicality and lethal forward line gave them the victory. 

Peresztegi-Nagy gave UVSE the lead in the first period, but Gurisatti, Kuna, and Leimeter scored for Fradi before halftime to give them a 3-2 advantage. 

Following the break, FTC scored three unanswered goals to take a two-goal lead: Szonja Kuna converted a 5m penalty, and summer additions Greta Gurisatti and Dora Leimeter scored to give their team a narrow but crucial 6-4 advantage.

With 0:04 left in the third quarter, UVSE’s comeback was very much on when Vanda Baksa, one of the top scorers in the American MPSF last year with Arizona, scored to pull the team within one. UVSE’s young guns,Panna Tiba and Kata Hajdu, then tied the game with goals, making the score 8-8. 

But Fradi stormed home, with hat-trick goals from Kuna and Gurisatti while playing a man up, and the game being sealed by Fradi’s captain, Zsuzsanna Mate, in the final minute. 

Both teams meet again soon in the Hungarian OB I, where Fradi will look to beat UVSE for the third time this season.

While neither team had much to play for, Mulhouse easily dispatched Nancy 15-5 in the meaningless matchup between the two French teams. 

Mulhouse dominated the game from the opening whistle and easily outmanoeuvred their opponents. 

Louise Guillet, a French veteran, was the game’s leading scorer with five goals, despite missing one of her four penalties. Kinga Mihaly bagged a quad. 

UVSE 8 – 10 FTC Telekom (1-2, 3-1, 4-4, 2-3)

UVSE: A. Magyari, T. Aubeli 2, E. Macsai, K. Hajdu 1, G. Szucs, E. Varro, V. Baksa 1, Z. Lendvay, P. Szegedi 1, P. Tiba 1, N. Golopencza, K. Peresztegi-Nagy 2, S. Golopencza

FTC: B. Neszmely, B. Vosseberg, Z. Mate 1, G. Gurisatti 3, P. Pocze, E. Millot 1, D. Leimeter 2, A. Illes, S. Kuna 3, P. Petik, D. Toth-Csabai, D. Domsodi, L. Greso

 

Mulhouse WP 15 – 5 Grand Nancy (4-1, 2-0, 5-2, 4-2)

Mulhouse: L. Cruz, V. Heurtaux 1, M. Le Roux, L. Andres 2, L. Guillet 5, L. Jean, K. Mihaly 4, C. Bouloukbachi 1, A. Van Dyke 1, V. Kretzmann-Bahia, T. Raspo, A. Daule 1, R. Edgerton

Nancy: L. Counil, C. Mari, A. Sabouriaut, L. Bachelier, C. Hanzo, M. Betard, P. Vizcarra 1, S. Pacheco Herce 3, C. Melik, L. Fanara 1, K. Benlekbir, A. Gabriele, P. Martineua-Peret

Standings

1. FTC Telekom – 3 – 9pts (Q)
2. UVSE – 3 – 6pts (Q)
3. Mulhouse – 3 – 3pts
4. Grand Nancy – 3 – 0pts

 

Group C

Vouliagmeni defeated Lille by four goals in a 34-goal match in which first place was at stake, prevailing 19-15. 

While Vouliagmeni might have been strong favourites going into the contest, Lille really played their part in making this a serious contest. Today, neither team’s defence was a factor; it was all about scoring more goals than the opposition. 

Five goals were scored by Emma Wright, while Eleni Elliniadi added four more to her season total. 

While Vouliagmeni had a three-goal cushion for the majority of the game, they never appeared entirely comfortable in putting away the French champions. Lille’s top two scorers, Erica Hardy and Veronika Kordonskaia, each scored four goals for the hosts. 

Lille and Vouliagmeni have advanced to the quarterfinals. 

Elsewhere, ZVL 1886 returned to Leiden in the Netherlands with at least one win, in a 15-12 defeat of German side, Spandau O4 Berlin. 

Lefke van Belkum’s team was able to earn a victory thanks to a swift start and a confident finish. Renee De Kleer’s goal-scoring prowess is invaluable; after scoring seven today, she now has 32 goals on the season across all competitions. Lotti Verhagen, a young Swiss international, tallied a hat trick.  

 

LUC Metropole 15 – 19 NC Vouliagmeni (5-6, 2-4, 6-5, 2-4)

Lille: M. Rycraw, M. Ouchache, L. Baes, G. Fitaire, E. Hardy 4, G. Deike 1, V. Kordonskaia 4, E. Bovali 1, O. Hertzka 2, M. O’Reilly, N. Meijer, A. Kochetova 2, E. Lefebvre

Vouliagmeni: M. Kotsioni, S. Kaiafa 1, D. Kalogeropoulou, E. Elliniadi 4, A. Giannopoulou 2, A. Ridge 3, E. Tankeeva 3, E. Wright 5, K. Stratidaki 1, D. Andreadi, M. Mimidi, F. Angeledi, E. Patra

 

Spandau 04 Berlin 12 – 15 ZVL 1886 (1-4, 4-4, 6-4, 1-3)

Spandau: J. Milicich, E. Koch, M. Linder, I. Deike, C. Weber, N. Busauerova 2, N. Zelmer, U. Doerries 2, D. Czirbus, I. Riley 2, E. Houghton 6, M. Tutusaus Alcaraz, A. Oldenburg

ZVL: J. Oosting, D. Kammerman 1, L. Roels, R. De Kleer 7, L. Verhagen 4, N. Zwiers 1, D. Gras 1, K. Schuit 1, L. Terpstra, M. Van Veen, T. Van der Meer, E. Van der Schalk, C. Van Leeuwen

Standings

1. NC Vouliagmeni – 3 – 9pts (Q)
2. LUC Metropole – 3 – 6pts (Q)
3. ZVL 1886 – 3 – 3pts
4. Spandau 04 Berlin – 3 – 0pts
   

   Athina Giannopoulou of Vouliagmeni (Photo: Eric Morelle)

Group D

A miraculous comeback victory (10-6) over De Zaan gave Terrassa more than the three-goal cushion it needed to advance to the quarterfinals. 

It always promised drama, but the contest between De Zaan and Terrassa absolutely lived up to expectations. Despite trailing 3-0 in the first period, Xavi Perez’s side really showed a togetherness and character to turn the game around in the second quarter, and build up their lead into the second half. 

Zaan took a commanding 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Dutch internationals Lieke Rogge, Maxine Schapp, and Mauda Koopman. However, the Spanish came storming back thanks to four goals scored by Terrassa’s left-handed captain, Pili Pena. 

As the first half came to a close, Terrassa’s 6-5 lead was thanks in large part to some impressive man-up play, with Fleurien Bosveld, a former Ede Polar Bear, giving her new club the lead.

It was in the third period that the game was decided, Pena once more, as well as Israeli, Dar Menakerman, and Paula Camus eventually got the Spanish ahead by the all-important three goals. 

From there, having got the goals they needed, it was all about defence, and the Spanish side, who have had a really mixed season, did enough to see the game out. 

It’s a heart-breaking end to their European competition for De Zaan. All their games were entertaining, but it was in the big ones where their true quality shone through. While it would be unfair to eliminate them so early, you cannot deny that Terrassa outplayed their opponents today. 

In the other game in the group, Plebiscito knew that a victory over Pacense would see them through, and they didn’t need to break a sweat to achieve the 30-3 margin of victory they achieved. 

Six scores from Alessia Casson, and five apiece from Elisa Queirolo and Carlotta Meggiato ensured that Stefano Posterivo’s team cruised into the quarter-final draw. 

 

ZV De Zaan 6 – 10 CN Terrassa (3-2, 2-4, 1-3, 0-1)

De Zaan: E. Alander, L. Rogge 2, L. Den Ouden, M. Schapp 1, T. Sam, E. Roijen 1, S. Vleeshakker, M. Koopman 1, D. Sap, A. Plugge, M. Van Tol, L. Plugge 1, B. Van den Dobbelsteen

Terrassa: S. Domene, M. Fernandez, K. Paul, N. Cuenda, C. Cantero 1, D. Quinzada, N. Ten Broek, M. Pena 5, D. Menakerman 1, P. Camus 2, A. Finestra, F. Bosveld 1, E. Arcas

CA Pacense 3 – 30 Plebiscito Padova (1-10, 0-9, 2-7, 0-4)

Pacense: A. Barbosa, L. Matos, C. Quinhentas, R. Duarte 1 J. Teixeira  2, M. Matos, A. Andrade, F. Duarte, B. Peixoto, V. Freire, B. Santiago, A. Sousa

Plebiscito: L. Teano, L. Barzon 2, V. Valyi 1, G. Citino, E. Queirolo 5, A. Casson 6, A. Millo 3, S. Dario 1, H. McKelvey, C. Meggiato 5, S. Centanni 3, B. Cassara 3, C. Giacon.

Standings

1. Plebiscito Padova – 3 – 6pts (Q)
2. CN Terrassa – 3 – 6pts (Q)
3. ZV De Zaan – 3 – 6pts
4. CA Pacense – 3 – 0pts

Follow all the action from the Women’s Euro Cup

Read more about Women’s water polo
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.