Eight teams in six countries celebrated their 2023 national titles
Gimcheon Korea Expressway Corporation Hi-Pass were crowned Korean women’s national volleyball champions on Thursday, three days after Incheon Korean Air Jumbos won the men’s V-League title. In other Asian countries, Pavlodar claimed the men’s national title of Kazakhstan, while Dar Kulaib topped the podium in Bahrain’s Isa bin Rashid Volleyball League. Four teams triumphed as national champions in three of the Baltic countries in Europe.
Lithuania crowned their 2023 title winners in both genders, with Elga – Master Idea – SC Dubysa Siauliai winning the men’s gold and Ausrine Jonava celebrating in the women’s competition. The Latvian women’s league trophy was lifted by RVS/LU Riga, while Selver/TalTech Tallin snatched the men’s crown in Estonia.
Bahrain
Dar Kulaib won Bahrain’s topflight Isa bin Rashid Volleyball League following a 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-22) shutout of Al Najma Manama on Tuesday in front of packed stands in Riffa. They completed a two-game sweep of the best-of-three championship series to claim their third title, after 2016 and 2019. The 2023 bronze medals went to Al AhliManama.
Bahrain Volleyball Association President Sheik Ali Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa and Bahrain Olympic Committee Board of Directors Member Sheikha Hayat bint Abdulaziz Al Khalifa jointly presided over the awards presentation on Tuesday.
Dar Kulaib triumph as Isa bin Rashid Bahrain Volleyball League champions (Photo credits: asianvolleyball.net)
Estonia
Selver/TalTech Tallinn swept Estonia’s best-of-seven championship series against Bigbank Tartu, winning the first four matches in a row to celebrate their first-ever national title. On 26 March, they started with an away 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-23) shutout of Bigbank with outside hitter Oliver Orav leading the way with 11 points. Three days later in Tallinn, Selver doubled their lead after a 3-1 (25-21, 13-25, 25-14, 25-18) victory with 14 points each from Orav and opposite Jan Markus Uprus. Orav led the team with 20 points as they visited Tartu for a 3-2 (20-25, 25-19, 18-25, 25-22, 15-8) win in the third match last Sunday. Another five-set battle unfolded in Wednesday’s fourth game in Tallinn and it was Orav again that emerged victorious with 26 points (including five aces) towards a 3-2 (25-22, 23-25, 23-25, 25-23, 15-13) success.
The bronze medals went to Barrus Voru, who swept the third place playoff against Parnu by three victories to none. Setter Leo Meyer (Selver/TalTech), opposite Matej Smidl (Tartu), outside hitters Oliver Orav (Selver/TalTech) and Matthew Slivinski (Barrus), middle blockers Mart Naaber (Tartu) and Marx Aru (Selver/TalTech), and libero Johan Vahter (Selver/TalTech) were honoured on the Dream Team of the championship.
Selver/TalTech Tallinn’s team roster
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Kazakhstan
Finals hosts Pavlodar became first-time winners of the men’s national title in Kazakhstan after two spectacular five-set battles with Atyrau in the gold medal series. On Tuesday, they squeezed out a 3-2 (26-24, 25-23, 28-30, 17-25, 16-14) win and, on Wednesday, they came back from a set down twice in the match to claim a 3-2 (20-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-18, 15-11) victory. Pavlodar had finished the regular season in third place, but after overcoming Burevestnik Almaty in the semifinals and regular season winners Atyrau in the final, they celebrated a historic success.
Burevestnik took their second consecutive bronze, after mastering two straight-set sweeps of Taraz in the third place playoff.
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Korea
Gimcheon Korea Expressway Corporation Hi-Pass produced a spectacular comeback in the Korean women’s V-League championship series to down regular season winners Incheon Heungkuk Life Pink Spiders by three wins to two and claim the second title in the club’s history. The series started in Incheon with two wins for Pink Spiders 3-1 (27-25, 25-12, 23-25, 25-18) on 29 March and 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-21) on 31 March with a total of 53 points from Bosnian opposite Jelena Mladenovic in the two games. Korea Expressway, however, used the home advantage in the next two matches to level the playoff after a 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-20) win on 2 April with 24 points from outside Park Jeong-Ah and a 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-23) win on 4 April with 30 points from American opposite Katherine Bell.
Thursday’s deciding match in Incheon unfolded in front of over 6,000 fans in the stands as a spectacular five-set thriller, in which all five sets were resolved by the narrowest of margins and Korea Expressway emerged with a 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 15-13) victory. Mladenovic was the best scorer of the match with 35 points, while Bell delivered 32 for the winners and was later voted MVP. Pink Spiders’ big star Kim Yeon-Koung was the best attacker of the season with a success rate of 45.76%. Han Soo-Ji of GS Caltex Seoul KIXX was the best blocker, while Daejeon KGC’s Hungarian opposite Elizabet Inneh-Varga was both the best scorer and the best server of the V-League.
Gimcheon Korea Expressway Corporation’s team roster
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Incheon Korean Air Jumbos claimed their third consecutive and fourth overall men’s V-League title on Monday upon completing the best-of-five championship series against Cheonan Hyundai Capital Skywalkers by three wins to none. Jumbos qualified directly to the final after topping the regular season standings on a 26-10 win-loss record, while Skywalkers made it through a semifinal playoff. In the first match, Jumbos produced a 3-1 (20-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-17) victory with a 28-point match high from Australian international opposite Lincoln Williams. In the second, Williams put away another high of 24 points towards a 3-0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-22) shutout. In the third game, Jumbos hammered out a spectacular comeback from two sets down to close the series with a 3-2 (23-25, 13-25, 25-22, 25-17, 15-11) win in front of over 3,300 spectators in Cheonan. Williams fired 34 points towards the victory.
Jumbos’ Korean international setter Han Sun-Soo was named MVP. Lincoln topped the season’s best spikers’ ranking with a 55.09% success rate in attack. Ansan OK Financial Group OKman’s Cuban outside hitter Leonardo Leyva Martinez was the best scorer on a total of 921 points and the best server on an average of 0.93 aces per set. Suwon KEPCO Vixtorm’s Yung-Suk Shin topped the best blockers’ chart.
Incheon Korean Air Jumbos’ team roster
Latvia
RVS/LU Riga went through the entire Optibet Latvian Women’s Championship season undefeated in 18 matches played. In the final series, they mastered two straight-set victories over Jeglava to defend their title from 2022. In the home match on 25 March, the team of the Riga Volleyball School delivered a 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-22) win with 20-year-old opposite Megija Dambrehte leading the way with 15 points and 20-year-old outside hitter and captain Kristine Kramena adding another 14. In the away game in Jeglava last Saturday 1 April, RVS/LU produced a 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-20) shutout of their hosts with a 23-point match high from Dambrehte. Another 20-year-old athlete, RVS/LU’s setter Elza Reknere, was recognized as the season’s MVP.
“This is my first gold in the Latvian championship,” Dambrehte told volejbols.lv after the last match. “I think this was one of our best games and the emotions were running high. Our task was to play emotionally and fight for every ball, which we did and that gave results. We have a fast game rhythm and I think that is why we were superior. I go on the court and do everything I can. I don’t have a special key to success.”
The bronze medals went to RSU/MSG Riga, who won the third place playoff series against SUFA/DU Daugavpils by two victories to one. This way the exact same podium as last season was lined up.
Lithuania
Ausrine Jonava dethroned the Lithuanian women’s champions of the previous six seasons, Kaunas-VDU, after two four-set victories in the title series to claim their sixth overall national crown and first since 2015. Kaunas had been undefeated since the start of the Top Sport Lithuanian Women’s Championship and they also beat Ausrine in the final of the Baltic League. However, the girls from Jonava shrugged off the opponents’ status of favourites in the gold medal series played in Kaunas and beat them by 3-1 (25-18, 22-25, 25-22, 31-29) on Saturday and by 3-1 (25-19, 25-13, 13-25, 25-22) on Sunday. 23-year-old outside Jekaterina Kovalskaja was the best scorer of both matches and was recognized as the MVP of the finals. In the first one, she hammered away eight aces towards the match high of 28 points. In the second, she led the chart with 22 points, including three aces.
Svaja-Viktorija-LSU Kaunas took the bronze medals after two wins over Vilniaus Universitetas Vilnius in the third place playoff. Setter Akvile Sebeziova (Ausrine), opposite Daniele Kvedaraite (Ausrine), outside hitters Egle Makauskaite (Kaunas-VDU) and Gerda Grudzinskaite (Svaja-Viktorija-LSU), middle blockers Kotryna Motiejunaite (Kaunas-VDU) and Marina Shramko (Ausrine), and libero Karina Najmovic (Kaunas-VDU) were named on the symbolic Dream Team.
“It was patience that made it possible to wait for the victory. We still have room for improvement, so we will try to defend the title in the future, Ausrine’s coach Raimonda Strelkauskaite told ltf.lt.
Ausrine Jonava celebrate the Lithuanian women’s title (Photo credits: ltf.lt)
The final of the Top Sport Lithuanian Men’s Championship was held in one match on Saturday in Alytus. Elga – Master Idea – SC Dubysa Siauliai battled it out for a 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-15, 22-25, 15-9) victory over Amber-Arlanga Gargzdai to celebrate the fourth national title in the club’s history nine years after the third. Outside hitter Artur Vincelovic contributed 18 points to Elga’s success and was named best player of the final.
Earlier that day, Etovis Kelme earned the bronze medals with a straight-set win over Suduva Marijampole. The Championship Dream Team included setter Matas Navickas (Elga), opposite Arvydas Miseikis (Elga), outside hitters Artur Vincelovic (Elga) and Robert Juchnevic (Amber), middle blockers Linas Starkutis (Amber) and Tomas Rogal (Elga), and libero Gilbertas Kerpe (Etovis).
“It was a difficult start, but we calmed each other down. We knew it would get better. We waited for our moment and then the game started to improve. Still, the fight was good. Five sets in the final is wow!” said Artur Vincelovic.
Elga – Master Idea – SC Dubysa Siauliai’s team roster
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