Fertiberia BM Puerto Sagunto make Naturhouse La Rioja suffer

Fertiberia BM Puerto Sagunto lost 32–33 tonight against Naturhouse La Rioja, in a match where the red-and-white side stood up to the second-placed team, who had to fight until the end to claim victory at the Ovni.

In the opening minutes, Fertiberia began with one fewer player on court after receiving a suspension in the first minute, which favoured the visitors. Naturhouse La Rioja took the first lead with a 0–2 run, against which the defensive variation deployed by the red-and-white side, with a man-marking role on Cacheda, could do little. Patxi Martí’s men soon raised their game; Bruixola’s saves and their attacking accuracy turned the score around. The red-and-white defence refused to be dominated and repeatedly thwarted the Riojan side’s intentions. So much so that Jota González was forced to call a time-out because his team could not find a way through the opposing goal. Towards the end of the first half, the Riojans increased their defensive intensity and put the Valencians under pressure, forcing them to give their all to go into the dressing rooms level at 13–13.

The second half began very evenly, with opportunities for both teams and both goalkeepers playing starring roles. Fertiberia refused to yield with a compact defence that Naturhouse La Rioja could not penetrate. Midway through the second half, the red-and-white side lost Víctor Álvarez after a heavy blow to the knee, causing momentary uncertainty in the home attack, so Patxi Martí called a time-out to make changes on court. It was then that the franjivino side took advantage of the home team’s confusion to open up a gap in the score (20–25). The visitors’ 0–5 run proved decisive in Fertiberia’s defeat, despite the Valencians’ late surge.

Fertiberia’s next fixture will be the nineteenth league round, against BM Huesca next Friday the 27th at 21:00.

Fertiberia BM Puerto Sagunto: Sebastiá, Bruixola, Bernatonis (4), Malasinskas (8), Rubén Ruiz (1), Sladic (3), Moriñigo, Tarrasó, Álvarez (3), Berrios (2), Plaza (6), Toni Alegre (1), Nebot, Fernández (1), Dukic (3) and Roque.

Naturhouse La Rioja: Miguel Sánchez (3), Juanín (3), Luisfe (4), Gurutz, Vigo (1), Gómez Lite, Garabaya, Stenmalm, Rocas (5), Cacheda (4), Rodríguez (3), Fernández (7), García (2), Romero (1) and Eliert.

For Fertibeira BM Puerto Sagunto, Plaza, Fernández (2) and Dukic (2) were suspended; for Naturhouse La Rioja, Miguel Sánchez (2) and Rocas were suspended.

Score at five-minute intervals:  1–2, 4–4, 6–5, 7–9, 10–11, 13–13 Half-time 16–17, 19–19, 20–24, 23–26, 27–31, 32–33 Full-time. Polideportivo Municipal Internúcleos “Ovni”. 1,500 spectators.

Match details: The ceremonial throw-off was performed by the senior and junior falleras of the Sagunto fallera committee, accompanied by mayor Sergio Muniesa and club president Juanjo Bataller. In addition, Bosal workers brought their protest to the Ovni with the slogan “no to the closure of Bosal, no more unemployment”, following the company’s unfair dismissals after it closed its doors, leaving them without any compensation. Pending medical tests, Víctor Álvarez may have suffered a cruciate ligament injury.

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.