Germany - VBL 1. Bundesliga 2017/2018

  • This was a typical match for Allianz MTV Stuttgart, I call them not for nothing the "drama queens" of the league. They are really very, very good to put maximum tension in a match, with this set/match ball finish in fourth and turnaround in tie-break. Sometimes I think, they should be playing more consistent to spare some unnecessarily lost sets like today in Münster, but part of their success is, that they attract much more interest with such rollercoaster matches as teams like Schwerin do, which play sometimes a little robot like :) (what is exaggerated of course, but I wanted to pronounce the different approach). Remember, so far the match Dresden vs Stuttgart was the most seen so far on Sport1 TV station, and this was by far not only the team Dresden, who granted it...

  • Sorry but I disagree. For me Stuttgart played very constantly on one level today (of course with some minor ups and downs as every team does), and there were no "unnecessarily lost sets" because Münster earned themselves those sets with very hard work and a lot of heart!

  • I couldn't watch this match and have only seen the end result and now the statistics. The latter tells, that Stuttgart was superiour in attacking efficiency (39 to 30 %) and blocking (19 to 13 kill blocks) and also in faults made (25 to 30) - all other differences seem not to be relevant. Therefore it is a miracle, how Münster could win two sets at all and this makes my point: Stuttgart performed not all the time like the top team it is, but gave Münster chances without the need to. Of course experience tells, that it is always difficult to beat the same opponent in short time twice especially once at home and once abroad as here and the league is relatively balanced, so the differences are not that big among teams, but I'm very sure, knowing our team very well, that this was the usual lack of consistency they have at times, especially in the fourth set, where I would be angry with them as their coach, that they lost it - this should not happen.

  • Allianz MTV Stuttgart has hired Paige Tapp (USA), the twin sister of Hannah Tapp, as middle and replacement for the heavily (foot) injured Micheli Tomazela Pissinato. She will arrive on Sunday and hopefully be allowed to play ASAP (after the abroad match in Wiesbaden) for our team. She trained the last time in USA and visted sister Hannah, who is playing regularly there (in Il Bisonte Firenze, A1). In Wiesbaden we will still have only two middles on the court, the US players Mallory "Molly" McCage and Jenna Potts.

  • Good Move from Stuttgart. She is not so good as Hannah but for the German League :-)


    She didn't trained in Italy. That is "Bullshit". She trained at the US Nationalcenter in Anaheim and fly last week to Italy for visited Hannah, Daly Santana and Sarah Wilhite.

  • Schedule for the weekend, all matches on http://www.vbl.tv


    Sa, 02. Dez, 18.00 Uhr: Erfurt vs. Aachen
    Sa, 02. Dez, 19.00 Uhr: Wiesbaden vs. Stuttgart
    Sa, 02. Dez, 19.00 Uhr: Suhl vs. VCO Berlin
    So, 03. Dez, 14.30 Uhr: Münster vs. Vilsbiburg
    So, 03. Dez, 15.00 Uhr: Erfurt vs. VCO Berlin
    So, 03. Dez, 16.00 Uhr: Suhl vs. Potsdam


    Wiesbaden vs Stuttgart and Münster vs Vilsbiburg should be the most interesting matches. Dresden vs Schwerin will be played next Wednesday as TV match.

  • Anyway, how long Micheli Tomazela Pissinato can't play: 4 middles are always better than 3, especially with so many competitions and matches. With Paige Tapp our fixed players roster reaches the maximum allowed size of 14, so it can be considered completed - and she has potential without any doubt. Finally currently she will be alongside with Molly Mc Cage the only middle of Stuttgart in 100% sound physical shape.

  • Wiesbaden seems to be fully out of shape in the beginning: they lost 9:25 the first set against Stuttgart - our team is definitely not that superior. Currently 3:12 in second set (!?).

  • And as if things weren't bad enough for Wiesbaden, now they lost their OPP Annalena Mach with an injury that was apparently so terrible that the camera moved away from her after she fell down on court ;( Looked like ACL...

  • Three expected results today: Aachen won in Erfurt in 3 and hosts Suhl against VCO Berlin (juniors team) in 4 sets, also Stuttgart succeeded in 4 sets in Wiesbaden, after a devastating start in the first two sets for the hosts (9-,15-). Third set as usual slipped away from Stuttgart after too easy start for them, but in the fourth the usual difference was visible (17:25). All parts of statistics were rather clear in favour of guests Stuttgart; they have now the advantage, that the main rivals Dresden and Schwerin meet each other in Saxonia on Wednesday (Sport1 TV airing) and can get three points only in sum - currently Stuttgart is second behind Schwerin, and if Schwerin wins with three points (I guess, they will), Stuttgart will stay in second before Dresden, despite the last have one match more now (the easy one against VCO Berlin).

  • Erfurt - Aachen 0:3 (15:25 10:25 21:25)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2026.pdf
    MVP: An Saita / McKenzie Adams
    Karolina Pisla played as libero for Aachen, Knip didn't enter the match today.


    Wiesbaden - Stuttgart 1:3 (9:25 15:25 25:19 17:25)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2028.pdf
    MVP: Karolina Bednarova / Deborah van Daelen


    Suhl - VCO Berlin 3:1 (25:14 23:25 25:22 25:19)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2206.pdf (soon)
    MVP: Krista DeGeest / Emma Cyris


    Tomorrow Münster-Vilsbiburg, Erfurt-VCO and Suhl-Potsdam.

  • Rote Raben (Red Raves) Vilsbiburg are really still weak this season: only one set won in Münster, despite they have with 1.1 Million Euro the fourth highest budget in the league (considerably higher than Münster especially).


    Erfurt had some trouble, but in the end kept all three points at home against VCO Berlin (like local rival Suhl yesterday) and keeps Suhl this way behind them, it seems, because Potsam won the first two sets in Meiningen against hosts Suhl, therefore it seems unlikely, that Suhl will get even a point today.

  • Münster - Vilsbiburg 3:1 (25:17 18:25 25:17 25:19)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2029.pdf
    MVP: Ivana Vanjak / Dayana Segovia
    Münster without Ines Bathen who injured her ankle in training yesterday.


    Erfurt - VCO Berlin 3:1 (17:25 29:27 25:23 25:16)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2207.pdf
    MVP: Paula Reinisch / Sindy Lenz


    Suhl - Potsdam 1:3 (14:25 22:25 25:17 23:25)
    http://live.volleyball-bundesliga.de/2017-18/Women/2027.pdf
    MVP: Klaudia Konieczna / Marta Drpa


    Ranking:
    1 SSC Palmberg Schwerin 6 6 18:1 18
    2 Allianz MTV Stuttgart 6 5 17:6 16
    3 Dresdner SC 6 5 17:6 15
    4 USC Münster 7 5 15:9 15
    5 Ladies in Black Aachen 7 5 16:9 14
    6 VC Wiesbaden 7 4 15:13 11
    7 Rote Raben Vilsbiburg 7 3 12:13 9
    8 SC Potsdam 6 2 10:15 6
    9 Schwarz-Weiß Erfurt 7 1 5:19 4
    10 VfB Suhl LOTTO Thüringen 7 1 5:19 3
    11 VCO Berlin 8 0 4:24 0

  • Rote Raben (Red Raves) Vilsbiburg are really still weak this season: only one set won in Münster, despite they have with 1.1 Million Euro the fourth highest budget in the league (considerably higher than Münster especially).

    Yes, it's more or less the same as every season: some teams enter the season with big goals and a big mouth (such as this season Potsdam and Vilsbiburg) but turn out to be a disappointment, and other teams who do their work rather quietly but very well end up playing much better (such as Münster and Aachen this season).
    It's still too early to make definite judgements, but from the tendency so far, Schwerin seems clearly the strongest team, Dresden and Stuttgart will fight for the 2nd place and behind them a lot of teams can all beat each other (Wiesbaden, Münster, Aachen, Vilsbiburg, Potsdam). Vilsbiburg and Potsdam wanted to be "the best of the rest" but so far they clearly aren't.