The young Serbian U-18 water polo team has achieved a major success, defeating Greece 19-14 in the European Championship semifinals.
Serbia will play for the title of European champion against Montenegro on Sunday at 6:30 PM in Oradea.
The young “Dolphins” showed they were the better team early in the semifinals, taking a 5-2 lead in the first period and matching that score in the second to build a convincing halftime lead.
There was no drama in the second half, as Serbia easily maintained its lead and, with a brilliant offensive performance, secured its spot in the final.
The scorers for Serbia were: Čonkić and Lazić with four goals each; Zelić with three; Canepa, Milašinović, and Nešković with two each; and Drobnjaković, Vasić, and Mićanović with one apiece. For Greece, Čazis scored eight, Angelopulos four, and Levantis and Pasilinakos one each.
Coach Miloš Saković’s team, buoyed by its previous victory against Hungary, played two outstanding periods and earned its right to fight for the gold. Čonkić scored three goals in the first quarter alone, making him one of the heroes for the Serbian squad.
Interestingly, Serbia played Montenegro in the first round and lost 9-8, although their opponent had a three-goal lead in the final quarter. Serbia’s path to the final included three wins and three losses. They finished last in their group, but who remembers that now? The Montenegrin team won all five of its matches and has a strong hand for the final spectacle.
In the other semifinal, Montenegro defeated Italy 10-6.
In the matches for 5th to 8th place, Hungary beat Croatia 18-14, and Spain was better than France with a score of 16-11. Malta secured ninth place, defeating Germany 17-16 in a shootout. The Netherlands convincingly won the 11th-place match against Poland, 18-7.
Greece 14-19 Serbia (2:5, 2:5, 5:5, 5:5)
Greece: Berdes, Angelopulos 4, Saroš, Maragudakis, Leonidakis, Lampatos, Čazis 8, Levantis 1, Pasilinakos 1, Bitakos, Alevras, Zanakakis, Gianopulos, Zuzunis.
Serbia: Kosanović, Vojinović, Nešković 2, Drobnjaković 1, Vasić 1, Zelić 3, Canepa 2, Papić, Jakovljević – Jugović, Lazić 4, Čonkić 4, Mićanović 1, Gošić, Milašinović 2.
Source: Nova; Photo: European Aquatics