In the final round of the regular season of the Volleyball Championship League on Saturday, most of the attention was focused on Raisio, where Hurmos would have risen to third place with a three-point victory over the home team Loimu.
This did not happen, so Loimu remains third and Hurmos fourth after Loimu won 3–2. Hurmos led the match in sets 2–1 after winning the third set crushingly 25–14, but Loimu won the next two sets.
– We clearly lost the third set because Mikko Räsänelle had two long innings. The match was full of phases and at the same time high quality. The upcoming quarter-final opponent Hurrikaani is to our liking, said Loimu’s coach Mika Rantanen.
Coach Rantanen changed the lineup for the fifth set after the ranking was decided, and the substitutes also succeeded. A chipper who played four rounds Joonas Jokela was the most effective with 23 points. In the regular season, Hurmos won all of their matches against quarter-final opponent Savo Volley.
VaLePa defeated Kokkola Tiikerit
Coach of defending champion VaLePa Janne Kangaskokko gave playing time to substitute players in the last match of the regular season, and the team lost two sets to Kokkola Tiikere. After that, however, VaLePa cheered up and won 3–2.
– After the break, we caught the Tigers’ chipper, and that’s why the course of the match changed, Kangaskokko explained.
If Tiikerit had won by three points, it would have kept sixth place in the table. After winning the hurricane, Tiikerit fell to seventh place, and Tiikerit will therefore face Akaa-Volley in the quarterfinals.
Chopper Tino Vuori was the most efficient with 24 points. General player Jiri Leinonen scored 20 points. Chopper Daniel Thiessen was the most effective of the visitors with 20 points.
– We are our own biggest opponent in the quarterfinals. You have to keep your level of performance high, Kangaskokko pointed to the quarter-final against TuTo Volley.
The hurricane kept TuTo in check
The only 3–0 result of the evening was seen in Loimaa, when Hurrikaani defeated TuTo Volley. The hurricane rose from the seventh place to the sixth place and will therefore face Raision Loimu in the quarterfinals in the Varsinais-Finland hegemony matches.
– This is a delicious pair of matches from our point of view. We have played well against Loimu. It’s a strong defensive team, so the key to victory for us is a versatile offensive game following a good reception, said the Hurrikaan coach Jani Scarf.
The success rate of Hurricane’s attacks was a whopping 66 percent. Aleksi Muukkonen made 20 and a chipper Kristers Dardzans 17 points.
– Kristers played at the same level as before the injury, and it’s good to continue like this. The team is healthy, and there are plenty of options, Niskakangas added.
TuTo Volley, who will face VaLePa in the quarterfinals, scored 14 points William Groffier.
Savo Volley beat Kyvy
Savo Volley’s fifth place was certain even before the match against Kyyjärven Kyky, which is preparing for the league qualification, and the team had attitude problems at the beginning. Kyky won the first and second set.
After the break, the coach Timo Tolvanen got the team’s game back to normal, and Savo Volley won the match at Pielaveti 3–2.
– During the break, some systems were changed, and the game turned around. A few players have had illnesses and a little trouble, that’s why the changes, Tolvanen said.
Savo Volley starts the quarter-finals away from home in Joensuu.
– We will start this information on Friday, because Hurmos’ home hall is reportedly reserved for another purpose on Saturday. I wonder a little, but nothing more than that, Tolvanen said.
The most effective against the ability was the chopper Veikka Lindqvist with 25 points. Tapio Toiviainen scored 21 points. The general players got a rest from the team’s normal composition Michael Michelau and Andrus Raadik and passari Kevin Rodriguez.
Match pairs for the semi-finals:
VaLePa–TuTo Volley
Akaa-Volley–Kokkola Tiikerit
Raision’s Loimu–Hurricane-Loimaa
Karelian Hurmos–Savo Volley
See the series table at this link.