In the 10th round of the Italian Men's Volleyball League, Milan, where Ishikawa Yuki plays, played against Taranto on Sunday, December 17th (local time) and won 3-2 (19-25, 26-24, 22-25, 25-16, 15-3). Ishikawa Yuki took to the court as a substitute for the first time in three matches.
First set starting lineup
Milan
OH: Melgarejo (Cuba), Kaziyski (Bulgaria)
MB: Rosell (Argentina), piano (Italy)
OP: Regels (Belgium)
S: Porro (Italy)
L: Catania (Italy)
Taranto
OH: Lanza (Italy), Gutierrez (Cuba)
MB: Gargiulo (Italy), Jendrick (USA)
OP: Sara (Italy)
S: Trinidad (Serbia)
L: Rizzo (Italy)
*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero
Match Report
In the first set, Milano took the lead 7-4 with a service ace from S. Pollo. However, Taranto tied the score at 7-7 with a spike from OH Gutierrez, and then turned the game around with a spike from OH Lanza to make it 10-12. Milano tied the score at 13-13 with an opponent's mistake, but then fell behind again with a service ace from OH Gutierrez to make it 15-18. Taranto also scored consecutive points with a spike from OP Sala in the final stages, and took the set 19-25.
In the second set, Milano took a 9-6 lead with a service ace from OH Melgarejo and a spike from MB Rosell. Taranto scored points with spikes from OP Sala, but Milano also scored points with spikes from OH Kaziyski, and maintained a 16-13 lead. In the final stages, MB Gargiulo's block brought Taranto to within one point at 21-20, and Milano sent OH Ishikawa onto the court to strengthen their serve reception. After that, OP Regels' spike put Milano first to set point at 24-22, but OP Sala's spike brought the score to deuce at 24-24. However, OP Sala's continued mistakes at the end gave Milano the set at 26-24.
In the third set, Taranto took the lead 4-7 with a block from MB Gargiulo and a service ace from S Trinidad. From there, Taranto made a break with spikes from OH Lanza and extended his lead to 6-13. Milano then scored consecutive points with a service ace from OH Kaziyski and a spike from OH Melgarejo, closing in on the lead to 14-13. However, Taranto again extended the lead to 18-22 with a block from MB Jendrick in the final stages, and in the end, MB Gargiulo made a spike to take the set 22-25.
In the 4th set, Milano took a 5-3 lead with a service ace from S. Porro and a spike from OP Regers, and then further increased the lead to 12-7 with a spike from OH Kaziyski. Taranto narrowed the gap to 12-10 with a service ace from OP Sala, but Milano quickly made it 16-11 with consecutive service aces from OH Kaziyski, and again took a 5-point lead. From there, Milano made 5 consecutive breaks with a block from MB Piano and a service ace from OP Regers, and pulled away from Taranto with a score of 23-14. Finally, a service error from Taranto made it 25-16, and Milan took the set.
In the 5th set, starting player MB Vitelli made a serve error, MB Rosell's block, OP Regels' spike, and S Porro's service ace were all consecutive, giving Milan a big lead of 8-1. Milan's momentum continued after that, with OH Kaziyski's service ace and MB Vitelli's block and spike winning the break, and they quickly reached match point at 14-3. Finally, Taranto's spike was an error, and Milan took the set 15-3.
As a result, Milan won against Taranto 3-2.
MVP: OP Ferre Regers 23 points (1 serve, 4 blocks) Attack efficiency rate 69.57%
OH Ishikawa Yuki No points Serve reception success rate 75%
Milan now sits in 7th place with a record of 5 wins, 5 losses and 16 points.
The next match will be against Perugia on Wednesday, December 27th at 2:00am Japan time.
Italian League Website: https://www.legavolley.it/
Distribution (VBTV, paid): https://www.volleyballworld.tv/home
Toshiki's Tweets
For now, I'm glad to see Milan win and Ishikawa return!
If we had been greedy, we would have liked to win 3-0 or 3-1 against lower-ranked Taranto and get three points, but the Italian league is the best in the world, and even lower-ranked teams are strong.
Milano had a hard time with Taranto's spikes and blocks until the third set, but from the middle of the fourth set, they overwhelmed Taranto in all aspects of their play, including spikes, serves, and blocks. They showed the difference in their own strength.
The opposite player, Regels, who was also selected as the MVP of the match, particularly stood out. He had the most points on the team with 23 points and the most blocks on the team with four, but what's more, his spike efficiency rate was 75%, meaning that he was able to score almost any shot he hit. His jumps were also very high and graceful, and his spikes looked sharper than usual.
At the beginning of the season, I thought that Dilić (Croatia) would be in the starting lineup, but it seems that Regels has already taken over as the right opposite. He is still in his prime, only 20 years old. I am very excited to see what kind of career he will have in the future.
Also, 39-year-old Kaziyski, who is about twice the age of Regers, led the team with four service aces and powerful spikes. This season, even without Ishikawa or Piano on the court, there is a sense of security as long as Kaziyski is there.
Ishikawa, who was on the court for the first time in three matches, including the CEV Cup, played only as a backcourt player and did not participate in any attacks today. There were concerns about his serve reception against Kaziyski and Melgarejo, so in this match he did a good job as a receiving expert. First of all, I'm really glad that he returned to the court, even if it was just as a backcourt player. The match after Christmas will be against the strong Perugia, so I hope he can play the full game then.
Our opponent, Taranto, has come close many times against strong opponents, like in this match, but they are still the only team in the league with no wins. I don't think the players have bad potential, but it makes me feel that it is really difficult to win until the last point.
By the way, Milan's victory in this match has also secured their place in the Coppa Italia! I wondered what would happen in the early stages when they continued to lose, but since Porro returned, they have been on a roll. However, if they continue like this, their opponent in the quarterfinals will be Perugia, who are currently in second place in the league, so it will be quite difficult to advance to the top four, but as with last season's playoffs, you never know what will happen, so I'm looking forward to it!
Photo: legavolley.it
You can read the latest issue of Monthly Volleyball for less than half price ↓↓↓
English 
Japanese