Itas Trentino earned a hard-fought 3–2 victory against PGE Projekt Warszawa in the first leg of the 2026 CEV Champions League Round of 16 in Warsaw.
The Italian powerhouse came out on top after a dramatic five-set battle at Hala Torwar, winning 25–11, 17–25, 27–25, 19–25, 15–9. The result gives Trentino a narrow advantage ahead of the return match scheduled for March 11 in Trento.
Trentino started strongly, dominating the opening set with an aggressive serving display. Warszawa quickly responded to level the match in the second set, and both teams continued to exchange sets in a tightly contested encounter. With the score tied at 2–2, the visitors proved stronger in the tie-break to seal the win.
Theo Faure led Trentino Itas with 22 points and was named the match MVP, finishing with a 53% attack success rate and five aces. Daniele Lavia, Jordi Ramon and Flavio Gualberto each added 13 points, while Simon Torwie contributed 10.
For Projekt Warszawa, Linus Weber scored 22 points, with Bartosz Bednorz and Kevin Tillie both adding 15.
Result:
PGE Projekt Warszawa – Itas Trentino 2–3 (11–25, 25–17, 25–27, 25–19, 9–15)
Top Scorers:
Projekt Warszawa – Weber 22, Bednorz 15, Tillie 15
Itas Trentino – Faure 22, Ramon 13, Flavio 13, Lavia 13, Torwie 10
The winner of the two-leg series will advance to the quarterfinals to face Bogdanka LUK Lublin.
