Israel stamps first historic victory in CEV European League

The Israeli girls wrote history this afternoon in Ra’anana as they debuted in the 2010 CEV European League with a classy performance against Greece to claim the opening match on schedule for Pool B.

A total of 1’200 spectators resumed to the local competition hall to attend this historic event and cheered for a very good performance of the hosts that clipped the first set 25-20. The young Greek team showed pretty good skills in the second set and tied the count after a solid 19-25. Sofia Kosma who scored a total of 11 points this afternoon contributed pretty much to this comeback. In the third set Israel re-gained full control of the operations, especially with Tatiana Artmenko who totaled 19 points in this match. Captain Tatjana Frage-Gerber (13 points) and Russian-born Anna Velikiy (14 points) helped Artmenko in seizing the set 25-16. The domination of the Israeli team continued in the fourth set that ended at 25-19 for the final 3:1.

Two of the best Israeli players that performed this past May in the European qualifiers, namely Aliona Cherkez and Ekaterina Podelinski, didn't play this afternoon. Ron Ponte played for Podelinski and displayed a very good performance.

The second match featuring Israel and Greece is scheduled for Saturday afternoon, once again in Ra’anana, at 6 p.m. (local time).

Results

Israel vs. Greece 3:1 (25-20, 19-25, 25-16, 25-19)