For this unusual midweek match, NVB traveled to Parisian territory for the 7th day. A match that might have seemed unbalanced on paper, but it lived up to all its promises.
Nice Volley Ball was on a mission to kickstart its season tonight. With a small victory this year, the Eagles are far from their objectives. Paris, on the other hand, had four successive wins before falling to Tours last weekend. Both teams were thus looking for a victory to set themselves on the right track.
The Eagles rush into the start of the match and suffer from Parisian attacks. Trailing by six points in the first set, the team from Nice responded with some beautiful saves. They were more precise on serve and unsettled the Parisian receivers. François Huetz, a new player for the French team, reignited his team with a brilliant attack that bypassed the Nice block. Meanwhile, the Paris Volley block worked wonders and brought the locals back into the match. The gap widened again and stabilized at +4. Paris concluded the first set in thirty minutes (25-20) despite a standout performance from Dawid Dulski.
The start of the second set was more contested. Colin Castelnau was more consistent in reception and Shay Liberman scored continuously. The Brazilian receiver-attacker unleashed powerful hits that troubled the Parisians. Dawid Dulski, a bit subdued in this set, encouraged himself with one of the Eagles’ first successful blocks. The team from Nice continued strong in this phase and moved ahead by four points (11-15). The gap was made more substantial as Paris accumulated errors while Lohan Nack-Mineym made his mark with block actions in turn. Following this, Liberman’s continued excellence allowed Nice to equalize at one set each (25-17).
Nice Volley Ball Takes Command
Nice completely turned the tide. The Eagles defended better and forced the locals to exert themselves in a match that could have ended quickly after the first set. The capital city’s players struggled to break out of their faux rhythm as the Maralpins gained confidence. Only the championship’s best server, Vasilii Molotkov, held down the fort for the locals. Ultimately, the set still shifted in favor of the Parisians thanks to three consecutive aces that gave them a break lead. Nice fought back, exemplified by the 28th point of the set that NVB secured after five alternating attacks. Subsequently, the players lost focus due to some of the officiating decisions that were not always understood and the absence of a challenge system tonight. Brice Donat’s men came back into the set (16-16) and even moved ahead after yet another mistake from the Parisians. Tension was high. The set appeared that it could swing to either side. In the end, it landed with the NVB by a narrow margin (29-27) following another contentious official ruling on a Parisian error.
Riding high, Nice leveraged positive momentum to lead 3-0. Merrick McHenry, at 80% tonight, emerged with a block and an ace just like Dawid Dulski, who struggled earlier. The locals, in difficulty, managed to return to equilibrium at 6-6 thanks to their young entrants. The fourth set continued just like the previous one. Nice led the race despite some moments of brilliance from Vasilii Molotkov. In the clutch phase, Dawid Dulski (MVP of this match) who finished as the top scorer of the match landed two decisive aces giving Nice Volley Ball a four-point lead, extended to five by Colin Castelnau who defended then attacked. The young receiver-attacker delivered a much stronger performance than two weeks ago against Sète. Lohan Nack-Mineym secured his fifth block in the match and granted the NVB their first match ball. Predictably, the match concluded on a final Parisian mistake.
Nice Volley Ball earned a second victory this season (20/25-25/17-29/27-25/19) which boosted their ranking. The team from Nice climbed to 10th place and earned a prestigious win that, hopefully, will kickstart the season for this young team.
Next match: Monday on the court of Plessis-Robinson at 7 PM to confirm this excellent result.
