National League Division 3C
Sunday 21st October 2018 Ashfield Vipers 0 Leicester Athena 3 Athena started strongly during their 2nd match of the day, this time against Ashfield Vipers. With a starting lineup of: Sarah setting, Monika opposite, Karolina and Kamila middle, and Petra and Kristy outside the only change to our usual order of play was Diana, who starred as our libero for the first time with our team as Algi couldn’t stay for the 2nd game. However, this made no difference to the way Athena usually play as they made their name known to Vipers, and with great serving and great attacking, they beat Vipers 25-6 in the first set. Vipers started to get their heads in the game more in the second set, and with a substitution of Tereza for Kamila, and Adela for Petra, there was a slight delay in Athena getting settled in the second set. It took the team a while to really get going, losing a few points in the beginning of the set from silly mistakes which were very unlike us. However, with some brilliant defence work from Diana, it made the way for Sarah to set to all attacking players and it was just too much for Vipers to keep up with, so we soared away to a 25-20 win. In the last set, despite some players now being tired from having played 2 matches in a row, Athena kept up their focus and with a further change of Petra back on for Kristy - the team came back from a few points deficit to a trail blazing win of 25-16. When they won, there was a huge amount of cheering because once again, Athena had won in their first National League games! This was our first triangular ever as a club, but also our first games in National League, and Athena absolutely flew away with their performance, impressing not only their supporters, opposition, coach, but more importantly, themselves! We play Nottingham Rockets and Ashfield Vipers in another triangular again on the 4th November in Nottingham. Lets hope we can recreate the same success as Sunday! Match Report by Sarah Booth
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National League Division 3C Sunday 21st October 2018 Nottingham Rockets 0 Leicester Athena 3 Athena's first National League Division 3 game on Sunday for Athena was a great success. Against Nottingham Rockets, Athena started strong and kept their game on the same pace. The teamwork and good communication on court stayed with Athena players until the end and resulted in a 3:0 win. Coach Gordon’s line up decision for our Bunnies was Paulina setting, Alysia opposite, Karolina and Tereza through middle, Kristy and Petra as outside hitters with an amazing support of Algi as libero. Athena’s serve and receive was good and that created a great opportunity for Paulina to set to all attacking players. A strong play and good movement helped Athena to win the first set 25:15. In the second set Tereza, playing with a cold, was substituted for Kamila as a middle player. Support and cheering from Sarah, Diana, Monika, Tereza and Adela kept the six on the court motivated and focused. After losing 3 points, it was Kristy’s turn to serve. Great consistent serving and strong attack helped Athena to keep the serve on their side and they won the set 25:3. The final set was a bit more intense as Athena lost their focus and made unnecessary mistakes. A strong attack through the middle from Karolina and great pick-ups from Algi as libero made sure that the bunnies did not give up and bounced back stronger then ever and turned the set around which meant they won 25:18. When the ball landed on the ground last time in the game and score changed to 25, the happiness and joy of Athena’s players and coach Gordon was amazing, after all…they had just won their first NATIONAL LEAGUE season game! Great work on the court and off the court from all players and congratulations to Kristy to be nominated as MVP.
One last thing ... we would like to point out one thing on this picture. Look at that COVER! Match Report by Petra Szőllősyová When we started the club, 2 and a half years ago, we were focussed on creating opportunities for women and girls to play volleyball in Leicester. Our dream was to create a fun, inclusive and yet competitive club. As we enter our third season, We think we have made good progress - but it is difficult to know how well we are doing since we are the ones setting our own goals. So, to have Volleyball England write such a positive and supportive article has taken our breath away. That recognition will re-double our efforts and will keep us humble.
Click here to read what Volleyball England said about us. Thank you to Michael Hallam for taking the time to get to know us and to write about us. |
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