The Serbian national water polo team was defeated today in Alexandroupoli, Greece, by the USA team with a score of 14:12 (1:3, 5:1, 4:4, 4:4) in the first match of the second phase of the qualifiers for the World Cup in Sydney.
Little suggested a defeat for the “Dolphins” as they won the first quarter 3:1, and with Dusan Trtovic’s second goal of the match, took a 4:1 lead in the 10th minute. However, a major slump followed; the Americans scored as many as five goals in just three minutes by the end of the second quarter and went into halftime with a 6:4 lead.
Ryder Dodd and Hannes Daube played excellently and hit Serbia’s net in the second half as well, although Luka Gladovic kept the “minus two” (8:10) with three goals before the final quarter.
Nevertheless, the relentless Ryder Dodd (five goals) was unstoppable, bringing a four-goal lead (14:10), so Strahinja Krstic and Vasilije Martinovic only softened the defeat.
The most efficient in the Serbian ranks were Vasilije Martinovic and Luka Gladovic with three goals each, Nikola Lukic and Dusan Trtovic scored two each, and Strahinja Krstic and Marko Dimitrijevic each scored one.
Serbia plays two more matches until the end – with the Netherlands on April 11 at 2:30 p.m., and then against Croatia on April 12 at 8:00 a.m. Only the winner will secure a place in the final tournament.
MORE TOPICS:
Source: Euronews; Photo: ATA Images