Germany – Bulgaria
At the end, the young German ladies were a little bit luckier, proving strong nerves and remarkable mental skills to overpower Bulgaria in extremis at the end of the fifth set (20-18). After several match points for both sides and 123 minutes of electrifying play, German wing-spiker Alisha Ossowski ended the game in Germany’s favor. Germany’s win-loss record improves to 2-2, whilst the promising Bulgarian talents (0-4) will have to pack their bags after Thursday’s last Pool round. Bulgarian wing-spiker Gergana Dimitrova topped the scorers with 26 points, including five blocks and two aces. Lisa Izquierdo helped the winners with 23 points, four units more than her teammate Ossowski.
Germany head coach Han Abbing: “We did not play our best volleyball tonight, but we played with heart. If you are not showing your best technical skills, at least you have to play with a big heart. That is what we did tonight.”
