In the Italian men's volleyball league Serie A, Milan, where Ishikawa Yuki plays, played the fourth match of the playoff quarter-finals against Perugia at home on Sunday, April 2nd local time, and won 3-2 (25-15, 19-25, 19-25, 28-26, 15-13).
Ishikawa Yuki was in the starting lineup for this match as well, and although he left the game with a leg injury late in the fifth set, he still contributed greatly to the victory with 18 points, the second highest on the team.
First set starting lineup
Milan
OH: Melgarejo (Cuba), Ishikawa
MB: Rosell (Argentina), piano (Italy)
OP: Patry (France)
S: Porro (Italy)
L: Pesaresi (Italy)
Perugia
OH: Leon (Poland), Semeniuk (Poland)
MB: Sole (Argentina/Italy), Russo (Italy)
OP: Herrera (Cuba)
S: Giannelli (Italy)
L: Coraci (Italy) / Piccinelli (Italy)
*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero
The stats for this match areHere
Match Report
In the first set, Milano scored consecutive points early on, including a spike from OP Patri on Ishikawa's serve, to take a 6-2 lead.
Furthermore, with a spike from OH Melgarejo and a service ace from OP Patri, they scored consecutive breaks and pulled away from Perugia with a score of 11-4.
After that, Perugia continued to make many mistakes as they struggled to score spikes, but Milan dominated the game with consecutive service aces from S. Porro and blocks from MB Rosell, and finally OP Patri scored a spike to give Milan the set 25-15.
In the second set, in stark contrast to the previous set, Perugia's side attacks, led by OH Leon, started to succeed one after another, and with a service ace from OP Herrera, Perugia took the lead 4-8.
From there, Perugia further extended their lead to 11-16 with a block from MB Sole and a service ace from OH Semeniuk.
Towards the end of the match, Milan fought back with OH Ishikawa stopping OP Herrera with a single block to make the score 19-22, but in the end OH Ishikawa was defeated in succession by OP Herrera's serve and OH Leon's block, and Perugia took the set back with a score of 19-25.
In the early stages of the third set, Milan went up 3-1 with an ace from S. Porro, but Perugia quickly turned the game around to 5-6 with an ace from OH Semeniuk and an attack from OH Leon.
Perugia further extended their lead to 8-12 with a spike from OP Herrera and a service ace from OH Leon.
After that, Perugia gradually gained breaks with spikes from OH Semeniuk and blocks from MB Russo, further widening the gap to 14-21.
Towards the end of the match, Milan got three consecutive breaks, including an ace, from OH Melgarejo's serve to lead 18-21, but in the end OP Herrera scored with a powerful serve and spike to give Perugia the set, 19-25.
In the fourth set, both players made serve errors in the early stages and fought for side outs, but OP Patri scored a break point with a block and a service ace, giving Milano the lead at 12-10.
After that, both teams continued to trade side outs, mainly focusing on side attacks, and Milano maintained a 20-17 lead until the end of the set.
However, a block by MB Sole and a direct spike from OH Leon off an OH Semeniuk serve meant Perugia tied the score at 21-21.
Nevertheless, OH Ishikawa made consecutive side-outs with skillful attacks, giving Milano the first set point at 24-23, but then OH Ishikawa committed a foul by stepping over the center line, and the match went to deuce at 24-24.
However, Milan immediately cut off OH Leon's serve with a single spike from OH Melgarejo, and finally OP Patri and OH Ishikawa scored consecutive powerful spikes to win the set 28-26.
Early in the fifth set, S. Porro scored a service ace to put Milan ahead 3-1, but shortly afterwards OH Leon scored three consecutive service aces to make the score 3-6, and Perugia quickly took control of the match.
However, after that, Milan's OH Melgarejo scored a sure side out, and after a tenacious rally, OH Ishikawa's spike scored two breaks to close the gap to 10-11, and then OH Leon's spike error tied the score at 12-12.
However, immediately after this, during the rally, OH Ishikawa's leg condition worsened.
At this point, OP Herrera was called for stepping over the center line, but the challenge resulted in a no-count.
OH Ishikawa was unable to continue the match and was replaced by MB Vitelli, who played in a different position as OH Ebadipour had already been used in this set.
However, as if to break the unpleasant atmosphere, S. Pollo scored a service ace to give Milan a 13-12 lead.
The next serve from S. Porro was a mistake, but L. Pesaresi returned the serve from OH Leon perfectly to the setter immediately afterwards, and although it was not a one-off win, MB Vitelli got a block touch on OH Semeniuk's spike, and then hit a quick shot himself immediately afterwards to put Milano in a match point at 14-13.
In the end, MB Rosell made a perfect block to shut out OP Herrera's attack, and Milan took the set 15-13, winning 3-2 against Perugia.
MVP: Osniel Melgarejo (22 points (2 serves, 1 block), 59% attack success rate, 38% serve reception success rate)
Ishikawa Yuki scored 18 points (including 2 blocks), with an attack success rate of 44% and a serve receive success rate of 44%.
Milan's quarterfinal record is now tied at 2 wins and 2 losses, meaning the semifinal progression will have to go to the fifth game to decide who will advance to the semifinals.
The fateful fifth match of the playoff quarter-finals will be held away to Perugia on Monday, April 10th at 18:00 local time (1:00 am Japan time).
Thoughts on the match etc.
I was there for this match and it was a truly incredible game.
It may have been the most amazing game I have ever seen live, and there is no doubt that it was at least one of the top three greatest games.
To be honest, I thought that Team Milan's journey to win the Scudetto (league title) would end today.
Although I would like Milan to win, objectively speaking it is clear that Perugia has a higher chance of winning.
I'm sure there were many people who were watching the match at the venue or via live broadcast who felt the same way.
However, they defied most people's expectations and lived up to them.
First up is Ishikawa Yuki.
Until the third set, it seemed as if Ishikawa was overshadowed by the efforts of Melgarejo and Patri (except for blocks), but it was undoubtedly Ishikawa who supported the comeback from the fourth set onwards.
He took the lead with his serve early in the fourth set, and then fired off a barrage of spikes in the final stages.
He had probably told setter Pollo to "bring the ball to me," as most of the balls were entrusted to Ishikawa in the final stages, and he scored one after another brilliantly.
I couldn't help but cry out at his clever feint that seemed to mock the opponent's block on the 23rd point, and at one point when the score was 24-23, he got too excited and overstepped the center line, but he didn't let that mistake get him down, and at the next set point he slammed a terrifyingly powerful spike into the court and took the set in a brilliant fashion.
As I was watching the play towards the end of the fourth set, I realized I was on the verge of tears.
Normally I rarely shed tears while watching a game, but just like Miyaura last time, I've had the opportunity to hear him talk directly to me many times this season, and I've been fortunate enough to be able to watch the games from a close up position, so I can clearly see the players' facial expressions and other small details, which is probably why I find it so easy to get emotional.
Even though we had only just won four sets and the fifth set was still to come, I was already starting to get sentimental.
Of course, the fifth set was also amazing. Even after Leon's consecutive service aces made the situation seem hopeless, he did not give up and continued to play. After scoring the sixth point with a pipe attack, he showed signs of hurting his leg, but he continued to play, especially on the tenth point, a high ball. Normally in such a disadvantageous situation, he would aggressively go for the rebound, but instead he hit it with all his might.
That's too cool.
That's why he seemed completely devastated when Herrera's risky play later caused his leg to deteriorate and he was forced to leave the court.
At the same time, it brings back memories of the Coppa Italia semi-final, where Japan lost after Ishikawa was injured and had to leave the game.
Moreover, at that time it was still the third set and there was still a chance that the reserve players could do something, but this time it was the fifth set and there was no other way around, so reserve player Ebadipour had already been replaced by Patry, and it was middle player Vitelli who came in to replace him.
If it was a side out, at least one player in the middle had to be involved in receiving the serve, so it was a very tough situation even though the score was tied at 12-12.
To be honest, I was prepared for Milan to lose.
However, the other players stepped up in Ishikawa's absence on the court.
It started with a service ace from Porro, followed by a serve receive from Pesaresi, a block and quick from Vitelli, and then a block from Rosell.
How many more times in the rest of our lives will we be able to see such a dramatic match?
I am truly grateful to have been able to witness such a wonderful match.
In the end, Ishikawa continued to receive treatment from the trainer after the match, so I wasn't able to talk to him, but his strength will be essential if we are to beat Perugia, so I hope to see him in good health again next Monday.
(I wish we could have built a relationship where we could talk to each other even in times like these...)
I decided to watch the next and final race in Perugia as well.
Perugia have yet to lose at home, but we're looking forward to witnessing the legend unfold.
PS I'm glad Patry is doing better.
Photo: Lega Pallavolo SerieA
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