National Cup - Round 2
Sunday 6 October Coventry and Warwick Riga 3 Leicester Athena 1 (26-24, 25-13, 22-25, 25-22) The NVL team faced Round 2 of the Volleyball England’s National Cup on Sunday against another Division 2 team. This was the second time that they have faced another Division 2 team since stepping up into this division after winning Division 3 last season. Arriving at Coventry & Warwick Riga’s venue off the back of a morning training session, we were hopeful that we had prepared enough to be able to face this new challenge. First set to C&W Riga The first set started with: Paulina setting, Alysia opposite, Alexandra and Karolina through middle, Petra and Kristy through the outside, and Algi as libero. The set started well, as Athena were able to keep it close to C&W Riga throughout the set. It was obvious that C&W Riga belonged in the higher division compared to the teams we faced last year, however it was also clear that we too, belonged. A strong left hander outside and opposite player from C&W Riga meant that we had to adjust our blocking system slightly to compensate for this, however it was done well by all players. After exchanging a lot of points and a fight at the end, C&W Riga just pulled ahead to win 26-24. The 2nd set started with the same line-up, but our confidence dipped at the beginning of the set and it was difficult to bring it back after this. The lack of communication was a huge problem on court, particularly in the service receive, which has never seemed to be a major problem in previous games. Alysia was replaced by Saffron through opposite, but despite this change, C&W Riga won the set 25-13. Athena fight back in the third In the 3rd set, Paulina was replaced by captain Sarah as setter, but the rest stayed the same. The 3rd set went better than the last, mostly due to the fact that we knew we could play better than we had done in the 2nd set. We came back with a bit more ferocity, and started to make attacking headway through the blocks of the C&W Riga players, whilst ourselves were getting touches to the block more regularly which helped the receivers in the back court. With a great rally of serving by Kristy, who scored 8 points in service alone – the joint highest of the game, we started to push ahead point by point. We finished the set by winning 25-22. In the final set, the line-up stayed the same as the 3rd set. We started off well but at the first technical timeout, we were behind 4-8 and with some words of encouragement from the bench, we went back on court with a positive frame of mind. At the second technical timeout, they had clawed it back to be behind 15-16. Now it was just a race to get to the end of the set. From the technical timeout until it was 22-22, both teams had only scored 1 point each until the service changed hands. However, at the 22-22 mark, we were on service receive and the pressure and lack of communication got too much as we lost 25-22. Lots of lessons learned We lost the game 3-1, but we have certainly learned a lot from the game. We were without our “great and masterful coach” – Gordon, who was enjoying the weekend back in Scotland. Whether or not that made a difference or not we won’t know, but the players on Sunday have certainly learned a lot and will take this learning forward to the rest of the season. Next week (13th October), we play away to Manchester Marvels in their first Division 2 league game of the season. We are the newbies to this league, but now is the time to prove to everyone else of course, but especially to ourselves, that we belong in this division. Thanks to Sarah for the match report
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East Midlands Volleyball League
Saturday 5th October 2019 Ashfield Vipers 3 Leicester Athena 0 Athena's regional league team struggled against a vibrant Ashfield team. Athena started with Eli, Ioana, Tereza, Amanda, Julia and Alessandra with Joy playing as libero - despite Amanda suffering from a very sore throat. The lack of early season training, a new libero system and players playing out of position all showed as Vipers moved into a very strong lead. Athena found it hard to gain any sort of rhythm and Vipers went on to comfortably win the first set. Coach Paul kept the team the same and the players began to show their technique as they grew accustomed to their playing positions. The energy, covering and hard work meant that Athena kept level pegging with Vipers all through the second set and led 18-15 at one point. But last season's problem in failing to close out winning sets came back and Vipers clawed their way back to win 25-22. Sam replaced Amanda, Edyta replaced Alessandra and Athena did play well in the third set, but they could not cope with the serving from one or two of the Vipers girls and they lost the match 3-0. We can take comfort from the referee remarking that the match was a lot closer than the score seemed. There are some good players in the regional league squad but it is a case of getting them to play well together and a case of taking their opportunities when they appear. National Cup - Round 1
Sunday 15 September Leicester Athena 3 Newcastle Staffs 0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-20) Leicester Athena's NVL squad powered their way into the second round of the Cup with a clinical performance against Newcastle Staffs. Athena will be playing Newcastle in Division 2 North this season and this was a good marker for the season ahead. With this match being held so early in the season, it was no surprise that both sides seemed to start a little tentatively, Athena started with Sarah setting, Adela as opposite, Karolina and Alexandra as middle and Kristy and Petra as outside hitters and Algi as libero. They soon began to settle into a good pattern as their first pass and movement meant they were able to create more chances to win points. Karolina's serve opened up a big gap halfway through the set and although Newcastle came back, Athena saw the set out 25-21. Athena swapped Alysia for Adela (who had to rush off to work) for the second set. However, Newcastle came out firing and they were 8-3 up by the first technical timeout. But Athena began to raise their intensity: Algi was everywhere in back court, Kristy's hitting started to make an impact and the whole team started to move better and anticipate Newcastle's attacks. They clawed their way back to be ahead by the second technical time-out and went on to clinch the second set 25-21. Once more Newcastle started the set strongly and were 8-4 at the first technical time-out this time. Saffron came on for her first appearance with Athena and replaced Alysia. Athena began to be more accurate with their first pass again and they worked their way back into the set and won it 25-21 to seal a very good victory. Coach Gordon was really pleased with the effort and they concentration shown throughout the match and Athena now move onto the second round. Well done to Algi, in particular who was spectacular in the back court. 4 middle hitters, 2 setters and one outside hitter. That was the available squad for the re-arranged final match of the season against Loughborough. To make matters worse, they had not had a training sessions for 5 weeks.
Athena started with Eli setter, Ioana playing opposite, Edyta and Tereza playing outside and Marta and Sam as middle. And they started well, keeping track with Loughborough Students up until 11-12. Then Loughborough pulled into the lead and Athena began to make unforced error after unforced error and they won only 3 more points in the first set. Coach Paul decided to move things around and Tereza went to opposite and Amanda joined Sam as middle hitter. But the re-jigged team never gelled. Loughborough surged to a 14-6 lead before Athena began to find their feet. Whilst Loughborough, led by their MVP libero, were picking up everything in the backcourt, Athena struggled to pass the ball to Eli at all but they began to inch back into the set and only lost 25-18. Having lost the first two sets, Athena changed things up again, Ioana returned to playing opposite, and Marta moved to outside hitter. Immediately, they looked more balanced and began to compete better. Their pass and teamwork improved and that put pressure back onto the Students. In a tight set, Athena won out 25-22. Athena started the fourth set in the same way. Sam's hitting was making a difference, Marta and Edyta worked well outside, Ioana stepped into set really well when Eli was taken out of the game and Amanda's serves pushed Loughborough all the way, but this time, the Students managed to edge the set 25-22 and won the match. It was a good match and Athena grew into the game and showed excellent teamwork. With a little bit more luck, they could have taken into a fifth set, then who knows. Thank you to Charlie for coming to support, well done to Edyta for being nominated MVP and a big hug to Marta who leaves us now to go to university. You'll be missed. Leicestershire League Friday 26th April 2019 PVC 3 Leicester Athena 0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-8) Athena's local league team may have lost to PVC 3-0 but they showed how far they have come with some excellent play. After a very nervy opening, they settled sown and played with real verve and togetherness. Unfortunately, they really struggled with one players serve and that was the difference in the first and third set, however, they kept going and kept chasing and, most pleasing, their positioning and movement showed how much they have learnt. The local league team has developed a core of players and that consistency has shown in the performances. Charlie's leadership has grown and grown as the season has progressed and she encouraged and urged her team on throughout the match. Her setting has improved a huge amount as well, really impressive for someone only in her second season as a volleyball player. Nikki has really improved over the season to the point where she is a starting outside hitter. Aleksandra has grown in confidence, her hitting and passing and serving are all getting stronger. Ioana's setting has also improved a huge amount and has developed a consistent serve. Amanda showed why she has now made the step up to regional league with some killer serves, great hits and a solid tactical awareness. Anna is developing as a player, although she does get very very nervous in matches so we are yet to see her best skills. Added to that, it was wonderful to see a couple of the newer players make their debut. After a very nervy start, Maria made an excellent contribution in defence and buzzed energetically around the court. Sue came on for Ioana in the second set as setter and she showed great touch. With a couple of new players yet to get onto court, with the return of Eve from maternity to look forward to and with a few juniors starting to turn up to training, next season could be a very exciting one. Well done, ladies. East Midlands Volleyball League
Wednesday 17th April 2019 Leicester Athena 2 Derby Darkstar 3 (25-19, 23-25, 7-25, 21-25, 6-15) For the second week running, Athena's regional team suffered fifth set heartache when they lost to Darkstar in another topsy turvy match. Athena started with Eli setting, Julia starting for the first time in 4 weeks, Sam and Amanda through the middle and Alessandra as outside hitter alongside Adela. Both teams started slowly and serve dominated as neither team were able to consistently build an attack. In a close set, Athena managed to eke out a lead at the end and win 25-19. The second set was equally tight. Kamila, Eli and Alessandra managed to put together a sequence of serves but each time Athena lost a rally, Darkstar came back hard and they managed to close out the set 25-23. Athena brought on Kamila and Marta to replace Sam and Amanda and the team never looked balanced. Athena had been dogged rather than spectacular, but, in the third set, Darkstar awoke and they pummelled Athena with hard, deep serves and Michalczyk was hitting tremendously well through 4. Athena could not get going and lost the set 25-7. If Darkstar thought that they were going to cruise to victory, they reckoned without a fabulous fighting performance from the Athena girls - exemplified by Julia. At one point, she hit and hit and hit until the Darkstar defence could resist no longer. Coach Paul had restored Amanda and Sam through the middle and all six players chased and harried and ground out points to win 25-21. And so it went to a final set. Darkstar began brightly with their MVP Kaminskaite directing the attacks. At the turnaround, it was 8-3 and Darkstar run out winners 15-6 in the final set. Julia is back from injury and picking up MVP awards, well done to her. Well done to Eli who is playing through the pain. Well done to Adela who has been playing as opposite for the NVL team for the past few months and playing outside caused her a bit of confusion once or twice. One more match left, this time against Loughborough Students. Let's hope we can record our fifth win of the season. East Midlands Volleyball League
Wednesday 10th April 2019 Leicester Athena 2 Nottingham Casualties 3 (28-26, 11-25, 25-22, 19-25, 7-15) Athena's regional team played a match full of highs and lows in their five set encounter with Casualties. Captain Julia returned to the bench after her ankle injury with Alessandra playing opposite Eli. Amanda and Sam played middle and Edyta and Algi were our outside hitters. Athena started slowly but managed to keep pace with Casualties. Halfway through the set, Athena seemed to step up a gear and start to dictate the set only for Nottingham to peg things back and Athena managed to clinch the first set 28-26. It was to be a foretaste of the whole match. Athena fell asleep in the second set. Their service receive was very poor and Eli was suffering with the amount of running that she had to do. Casualties won 25-11. For the third set, Julia was restored to opposite and the team clicked and showed some really good play to 25-22. Amanda looked very solid in the middle both in front court and back court and Edyta's serving caused problems. Despite starting the fourth set well, Athena began to get stuck and Casualties clawed their way into a lead. Alessandra replaced Edyta as outside hitter and her extra height provided a cutting edge to Athena's attacks but the first pass continued to let them down. Eli's had to come off injured late in the set and that thrust Edyta into the unfamiliar role of setter. Into the fifth and deciding set, Casualties started strongly as Athena struggled to pass cleanly to Edyta. At the change, Casualties were 8-2 up but Eli came back on to set and Athena began to find a way to penetrate their defence. However, Casualties held out to win 15-7 and clinch the win. Eli won MVP - a well deserved effort for her hard work, strong serving and determination. Thank you to Edyta for gamely going to set when Eli was injured. East Midlands Volleyball League
Thursday 4th April 2019 Hermitage 0 Leicester Athena 3 (22-25, 19-25, 13-25) A strong regional team put in a good performance to beat a resilient Hermitage to complete the double over them. Work commitments stripped Athena of a number of players so Tereza was drafted in from the NVL squad to play as an outside hitter. Athena started with Eli setting and Ioana as opposite, Kamila and Marta as middles and Edyta and Tereza as outside hitters. Good serving from Edyta and Kamila helped Athena build a big lead until Hermitage called a time out. Hermitage came back on court and regrouped and began to claw back Athena's advantage through some solid defending and great blocking from their MVP Dominique. Eventually, Athena regained control and saw out the set 25-22. The second set was a closer affair from the start with neither team able to gain a distinct advantage. Athena's pass was becoming wayward and Hermitage's strong middle blocking meant that Athena had to find other avenues to attack. Thankfully, Tereza began to find her feet playing in this unfamiliar position and began to consistently hit winners through 4. The pressure of Athena's attack began to tell and they won the second 25-19. Coach Paul said he wanted his side to thrill him in the third set and they did not disappoint. Edyta was in the groove, hitting from back court, jump serving and covering every inch of the back of the court .. she was well-deserving of her MVP nomination. Marta's passing was spot on, Ioana was covering and stepping into set when Eli needed help and Eli was beginning to set wider to Tereza's left hand to create more chances. Amanda came on for Kamila and hit winners through the middle. Athena won the third set 25-13 to finish 3-0. It was a very good performance, everyone contributed and the togetherness and effort on court shows how this team is steadily improving. Well done to Edyta for her MVP nomination, even the referee remarked at how well she played. Finally, thank you to Sarah for coming to support and for bossing our Instagram story feed with videos and photos, check them out here: https://www.instagram.com/leicesterathenavolleyball/ East Midlands Volleyball League
Sunday 31st March 2019 Derby Darkstar 3 Leicester Athena 1 (21-25, 25-22, 25-17, 25-12) Athena's regional league team made an excellent start against Derby Darkstar but could not hold on to secure the victory. Athena started with Eli setting and Adela coming in as opposite to cover for the injured Julia and absent Ioana. Kamila and Marta began as middle hitters and Edyta and Algi were outside hitters ... and they started with a bang. They served hard, fought for every ball, chased every mishit pass and hit hard. From the noise and court and the smiles on their faces, you could see that they were in the "zone" and they put Darkstar onto the backfoot. It was close but strong serving by Kamila sealed the set 25-21. We knew that Darkstar would come back strong, they are a talented team and they didn't disappoint, but Athena held their nerve and carried on fighting and hitting the ball when it was there to be hit. Marta was immense at the net and Eli's setting was on teh money. It was another incredibly tight set, but this time, Darkstar managed to put in a set of strong serves at the end of the set to pull away 25-22. Alessandra replaced Algi and provided a different attacking dimension. Once again the set was close up until Darkstar's setter and MVP Kaminskaite sent over a series of devastating serves to pull ahead 16-8. It was a deficit that Athena just could not close and Darkstar closed it out 25-17. Sam now came on for Marta but Darkstar quickly jumped into a 10 point lead. Suddenly, Athena were looking tired and were no longer passing with the same relaxed fluidity. Milly came on for the visibly tiring Kamila and played well but nothing could stop a rampant Darkstar winning the fourth set 25-12 and winning the match 3-1. As Athena's MVP, Adela, said "We became too cautious in the second set, that is why we lost". That should not detract from the fact that, once again, Athena showed flashes of excellent play and there are signs that next season could be a very good one if this group stays together. Athena completed a double-header of victories to ensure they finished their first season in the National League as champions.
A month ago, Athena beat Norwich in a tense 5 set battle in Leicester but the feeling was that the victory had given the squad a massive boost in confidence and so it proved to be. Athena blitzed Norwich 3-0 demonstrating tremendous coverage and crushing attacks. Athena started with Sarah setting, Adela as opposite, Karolina and Alexandra through the middle, Diana and Kristy as outside hitters and Petra as libero. And Athena were out the blocks fast. Athena were clearly in the mood to seal the title and their hitting put Norwich's defence under all sorts of pressure. Kristy was hitting hard as was Alexandra and Adela's serving propelled Athena to a 25-11 first set win. The second set followed the same path, as Petra and Diana's passing, Adela's mobile covering set up attack after attack. Athena won 25-13. Athena's intensity dropped at the start of the third set and Norwich managed to pull away into a 16-8 lead but Athena were not to be outdone. Their consistent attacks and their determination to win even the long, scrappy rallies saw them pull back until they sealed the third set 25-22 to cue the celebrations. Karolina won her second MVP of the day but there were so many great performances. It was a performance of agility, teamwork, effort and phenomenal power. Athena are champions of Division 3C and can now spend the summer preparing for life in Division 2 North. |
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