FTC prevail in Dortmund, Gloria complete late comeback

• FTC claimed their first away win against BVB in their third meeting — a good grounding ahead of the rematch in Hungary as they target their 14th quarter-final appearance
• FTC's top scorers Petra Simon and Katrin Klujber led the charge once again, netting eight and six goals respectively and taking their tallies to 75 and 73
• Gloria Bistrita won their first Champions League clash against Ikast and celebrated their first victory in three encounters against the Danish side thanks to a strong final 10 minutes
• goalkeeper Renata de Arruda made crucial stops for Bistrita's win, finishing with 14 saves
• both Bistrita and Ikast are eyeing their first quarter-final spot as the rematch moves to Romania next weekend

PLAY-OFFS, FIRST LEG

BV BORUSSIA DORTMUND (GER) VS FTC-RAIL CARGO HUNGARIA (HUN) 25:31 (10:13)

H2H: 0-1-2
Top scorers: Lara Egeling 8/12 (BV Borussia Dortmund); Petra Simon 8/14 (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria)

BVB challenged FTC hard, not allowing the Hungarian side to make a break for a larger part of the clash. With a solid defence and former FTC player Melinda Szikora making key saves, BVB kept the game tight and even forced Jesper Jensen to call a time-out in the 21st minute at 9:9. The new plan paid off as FTC spurred a new run to open their first three-goal lead with Petra Simon netting her third of the day and becoming the driving force of her side. They held on to that gap until the break as Blanka Böde-Bíró joined the goalkeeping show with 44 per cent save efficiency at half-time.

In the opening minutes of the second half, FTC seemed to get a grip on the game, setting a 18:14 lead. However, BVB kept their heads high and with Kelly Vollebregt and Lara Egeling as their lynchpins, they levelled in the 46th minute. However, their progress was hampered by the sheer number of attacking mistakes, allowing FTC to open a new gap as the game entered its final 10 minutes. BVB's potential comeback was ultimately stopped by Laura Glauser who came in between the posts and helped her side seal a six-goal win with crucial saves, setting a strong lead ahead of the rematch.

IKAST HÅNDBOLD (DEN) VS GLORIA BISTRITA (ROU) 34:35 (21:16)

H2H: 2-0-1
Top scorers: Stine Skogrand 10/12 (Ikast Håndbold); Danila So Delgado 11/16 (Gloria Bistrita)

It was a back-and-forth game with the teams trading leads in the first 15 minutes. Gloria Bistrita were the first to open a two-goal gap (7:5), but their attack soon came to a halt, allowing Ikast to step up a gear. Within minutes the home team spurred a 4:0 run to go 12:8 up as Stine Skogrand led the charge, netting half of Ikast's goals in the opening 20 minutes. Bistrita came close again when Sonia Seraficeanu cut the gap to one, but playing without a goalkeeper proved costly as Ikast quickly restored their lead through easy goals in a high-scoring first half.

The second half brought the excitement worthy of the play-offs. From trailing by five, Gloria gradually built their comeback — first with a 3:0 run, then with key saves from Renata de Arruda and by the 50th minute the teams were in deadlock (30:30). Bistrita then took a hit as their top scorer Danila So Delgado received a red card, but even without her in the final five minutes, they completed the turnaround. At 34:33 in the 56th minute they took their first lead since 7:6 and with De Arruda adding a couple more crucial saves, Ikast faltered under pressure. With only 10 outfield players on the match sheet the home team showed signs of nerves in the closing stages, scoring just once in their last five attacks and ultimately handing a narrow win to their opponents.

Photos © Wolfgang Stummbillig; Hamistolen.dk