In the fifth match of the Italian Men's Volleyball League playoff semi-finals, Monza, where Takahashi Ai plays, faced Trentino on Sunday, April 14th (local time) and won 3-2 (25-18, 25-22, 23-25, 24-26, 17-15).
Takahashi Ai was in the starting lineup and was selected as MVP with her 19 points.
First set starting lineup
Monza
OH: Ma (Canada), Takahashi
MB: Galassi (Italy), Di Martino (Italy)
OP: Lepki (Canada)
S: Cachopa (Brazil)
L: Gazzini (Italy)
Trentino
OH: Micheletto (Italy), Lavia (Italy)
MB: Kozamelnik (Slovenia), Podrascanin (Serbia)
OP: Lihiritzki (Luxembourg)
S: Acquarone (Italy)
L: Laurenzano (Italy)
*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero
MVP: OH Takahashi Ai
19 points (serves 2)
Attack effectiveness rate 39.471 TP3T
As a result, Monza improved to 3-2 in the semi-finals and advanced to the final after defeating Trentino.
The final will also be against Perugia in a best-of-five format. The first leg of the playoff final will be held at Perugia's home stadium on Thursday, April 18th at 27:30 Japan time.
Italian League Website: https://www.legavolley.it/
Distribution (VBTV, paid): https://www.volleyballworld.tv/home
Toshiki's comment
Takahashi Ai advances to Monza final!!!
I'm glad you came this far.
They lost the first and second games relatively easily, and it looked like they would lose three games in a row, but with Mar's comeback and the introduction of the 3OH system, they recorded an amazing three wins in a row and advanced to the finals.
In this match, Monza continued the momentum from the fourth match which ended 25-11, and their serve and defense worked well from the beginning, allowing them to take the first set without any trouble.
The second set was a fierce battle with the score tied at 22-22 until the end, when Marr scored a service ace to give Monza the win at 25-22.
In the third set, the three outside hitters, Takahashi, Ma, and Lepke, started off strong and led 10-5. Just when it seemed they would win the set and secure a straight victory, Tolentino's blocks led to four consecutive breaks, tying the score at 10-10.
The match continued until the end, but Lepke's serve ended in an error, allowing Trentino to take the third set 23-25.
The fourth set was also a close one until the end, but Trentino came up just short, winning 24-26, sending the match into the final set.
At the beginning of the fifth set, Monza was leading 6-4 thanks to Takahashi's spikes, but Trentino turned the game around with consecutive service aces from Lavia to make it 7-8.
From there, Monza was trailing by one point, but Lepke and Marr scored from the turnaround, and Monza took the lead again at 13-11. Then, at match point at 14-13, they were in a side-out situation, and if they had scored here, they would have advanced to the finals, but Takahashi, who was entrusted with the toss, had his spike blocked by Trentino's wall, and the game was tied at 14-14.
However, Lepke scored a spike to make the score 15-14, and then, as if to erase the disappointment of his earlier performance, Takahashi scored two consecutive spikes to give Monza a 17-15 fifth set victory!!!
We have advanced to the finals.
Even after losing a match point, the setter Cachopa continued to trust in him and entrusted the ball to Ran Takahashi, who responded. It was a passionate finish.
In this match, Monza's strength was their serve, but the defense as a whole team was very good and the ball did not fall at all. Libero Gazzini was especially good. I would like to give him the secret MVP.
Takahashi's play was particularly impressive with his fake sets, and I think he scored almost all of his points, both those he set and handed over to other attackers, and those he hit directly himself. Great situational judgment.
Trentino's opposite hitter Lihilicki was hitting the ball like crazy, but Monza was able to turn a blind eye to that by keeping an eye on outside hitters Micheletto and Lavia, which ultimately reduced the effectiveness of their attacks, leading to their victory.
This is Monza's first time in the final since the 2000/01 season, 23 years ago, and the first time a Japanese player has reached the Italian League final in 21 years, since Treviso in the 2002/03 season, when Yoichi Kato was there.
However, before the start of the season, no one would have imagined that Takahashi Ai would reach the Italian League final before Ishikawa Yuki.
The speed at which Takahashi Ai's career has progressed is truly amazing...
Our opponent in the final will be Perugia, who we lost to in the Coppa Italia final. However, Takahashi was injured at the time, so we don't really know what will happen this time.
Monza suffered bitter experiences in both the Coppa Italia and CEV Challenge Cup finals.
Will the third time be a charm and they'll win the gold medal?!
Anyway, it's just too much fun!!!
Photo: Legavolleyball.it
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