On Wednesday evening, Fonte do Bastardo defeated Sporting 3-0 (26-14, 25-19 and 25-21) in the quarter-finals of the Men’s Volleyball Challenge Cup, which was held at the Vitorino Nemesio Pavilion, in Praia da Vitória (Terceira Island, Azores )
In a match refereed by the Danish Morten Ingeborg Klein and the Belgian Paul Herbutz, Fonte do Bastardo, coached by Nuno Abrantes, defeated the competition of the Lions, led by Joao Coelho, who went to the Azores with a great absence in the last minute. : Cuban José Masso received the news of his father’s death when he was checking in at the hotel in Angra do Heróismo that hosted the lions, and returned to the mainland.
In the first seven, both teams held the lead by 19-16, but the Islanders responded in time and took a 25-24 lead, thanks to the great protagonist of the night and the match: it was Venezuela’s Edson Valencia. An inspiring night and a successful performance, being the main responsible for the victory of the Azores, effective in defense and lethal in attack – and defeating Sporting: he finished the partial with an “ace” (rather direct serve).
Balance again led the start of the second seven, with Sporting again leading by 12-10, thanks to the work of Reus and Barth. But some failures in reception allowed the hosts to bounce back again, at 15-14, in front of the raving fans in the stands.
Leonín’s coach, Joao Coelho, risked everything and released Pedro Cardoso to the court, but the Azores, always prepped by Edson Valencia – for (not) a change – not only kept the advantage, but also extended the advantage to 23-17, closing out the second set. Without discussion in Nolito attack.
An infamous drop in spirit – and performance, and confidence – by Sporting at the start of the third set, which turned out to be the last. Safe on reception, the Azores have always maintained a safe advantage (four to five points) and happily closed out the game.
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