Lady Luck was against Alser

Alser Puerto Sagunto were defeated at El Sargal by BM Ciudad Encantada 26–25, in a very bitter finish for the red-and-whites, who saw their 25–25 draw with 8 seconds of possession remaining for the hosts after Sorrentino’s strict suspension overturned by Da Costa on the final hooter. A painful defeat, but one that should in no way overshadow Alser Puerto Sagunto’s excellent performance on such a difficult court as Cuenca’s. The match initially belonged to Alser, with Goran surprising everyone with an open defence and Marko Dzokic performing at a very high level in the advanced position. In that opening period, the leads belonged to the red-and-whites, and the Valencian defence disrupted the Cuban line of Pavan, Corzo and Da Costa. Alser maintained a good scoring rate, with Muiña scoring 5 goals and Sorrentino 6, leading the red-and-white attack. Cuenca then recovered through its Cubans and an Angel Perez who surpassed Cuban Corzo’s level of playmaking and also scored 6 crucial goals for his team. The second half was extremely even, with both teams raising their defensive level, while Hita’s introduction in place of Kapellin in the Cuenca goal improved their performance. The finish was not for the faint-hearted: Alser managed to draw level with 20 seconds remaining and, as mentioned, lost on the final hooter what they had fought so hard to achieve. The outstanding feature was the excellent collective effort from the whole team and, individually, the immense work of the Valencian from Sueca, Sorrentino, who attacked at the level described and defended like a colossus for most of the match. BM Ciudad Encantada: Kapellin, Fernandez(4), Corzo(7), Mendoza, Da Costa(3), Pavan(4), Georgescu(2). Starting seven. Sabonis, Cibulskis, Gamuz, De Hita, Juanjo Fdez, Hugo and Angel Perez(6). Alser BM Puerto Sagunto: Bruixola, Sorrentino(6), Sifre(4), Dzokic, Tarraso(3), Angel(2), Chelu Cid(2), Moya de Saz, Ruiz(2), Nacho Moya, Stefanovic(1), Muiña(5) and Nebot. Referees: Raluy and Sabroso. Score every 5’: 0–2, 1–4, 4–6, 8–7, 11–9, 14–12. Half-time. 15–15, 18–18, 22–19, 23–21, 25–23, 26–25 Final. El Sargal Pavilion. 1,500 spectators.

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.