Serbia and Greece finished in 2nd place in their respective groups at the European U20 Championships in Varna and joined Italy and Spain in the quarterfinals. The Italians and the Spaniards, the group winners, secured their spots in the Top 8 yesterday, after the 2nd competition day.
Crossover round (August 13): Montenegro – Malta, Germany – Netherlands, Hungary – Turkiye, Croatia – France
Quarterfinals (August 14): Italy – Germany/Netherlands, Greece – Montenegro/Malta, Spain- Hungary/Turkiye, Serbia – Croatia/France
Greece defeated Croatia 16:14 in today’s opening game in Group A. Croatia’s strong start suggested the Croats might claim all three points, as they raced to a 6:3 lead early in the second quarter. However, the game quickly turned around. Greece went on a 6:2 run to turn around the three-goal deficit into a 9:8 lead in the 16th minute. Croatia equalized at 9:9 in the final second of the second period, but that proved to be the last time the teams were level.
Greece opened the second half with two quick goals to move 11:9 ahead. Deep into the third quarter, the Greeks extended their lead to 13:10. Croatia twice cut the deficit to one goal, at 12:13 and 13:14, but could not find the equalizer. Karatzas (Greece), Dragosevic and Skejic (both Croatia) scored three goals each.
But, after the win over Croatia, Greece still had to wait for an outcome of the match between Italy – Hungary. The Italians achieved a narrow 18:17 win. They finished the group stage with a perfect record, and helped Greece reach quarterfinals without playing in the crossover round.
After a balanced first quarter (2:2), Italy ruled the field in the second period and had a 9:5 advantage at halftime. However, Hungary reduced the gap to one in the first three minutes of the third quarter (8:9). The Hungarians chased the rival and caught up with Italy in the 25th minute (12:12). Italy quickly replied with two goals (14:12). Hungary’s captain Botond Balogh was outstanding (7 goals), but his team couldn’t level the score once again in a high-scoring fourth period, even tough it was a close contest until the very end. A minute before the end, Italy netted its 18th goal (18:16), and Balogh set the final score with eight seconds remaining. As in the previous two matches, Italy’s attack was led by Antonio Di Simone (4 goals).
An encounter between Serbia and Montenegro – the decisive one in a battle for 2nd place in Group B – was similar to the match Serbia – Spain. Two days ago, Serbia lost in a penalty shootout to Spain even though it had a 10:6 lead before the final quarter. The Serbs once again squandered a solid lead against Montenegro, but a dramatic penalty shootout ended happily for Serbia, which secured a 17:15 victory.
Photo: European Aquatics
The Balkan derby was an even contest from the beginning, and Serbia started dictating the pace in the middle two periods, which allowed it to enter the final quarter leading 12:10. Strahinja Krstic stretched the margin to three, 13:10, in the 26th minute. Serbia was 14:12 up with 77 seconds to go. However, Montenegro had the last word in the regular time. Moracanin leveled at 14:14 just 23 seconds before the final buzzer. The Serbian players didn’t convert a man-up in their last possession. However, they earned two points in a shootout – 17:15. Miljan Djokanovic scored five goals for Serbia, and Ognjen Moracanin was Montenegro’s best scorer (4 goals).
Spain confirmed the top spot in the group with a 19:11 win over Germany.
Malta and France earned hard-fought victories over Romania and Bulgaria to qualify for the crossover round from Sub-division 2.
2026 European U20 Championships, Elite Division, Varna, Day 3
Sub-division 1
Group A
Croatia – Greece 14:16 (5:3, 4:6, 2:4, 3:3)
Italy – Hungary 17:18 (2:2, 3:7, 6:3, 6:6)
Standings: 1. Italy 9, 2. Greece 4, 3. Croatia 3, 4. Hungary 2
Group B
Serbia – Montenegro 17:15 (4:5, 3:2, 5:3, 2:4, PSO 3:1)
Spain – Germany 19:11 (4:1, 7:2, 5:1, 3:7)
Standings: 1. Spain 8, 2. Serbia 6, 3. Montenegro 4, 4. Germany 0.
Subdivision 2
Group C
Turkiye – Slovenia 26:8 (8:3, 5:0, 7:0, 6:5)
Bulgaria – France 11:13 (2:2, 2:3, 3:3, 4:5)
Standings: 1. Turkiye 9, 2. France 6, 3. Bulgaria 3, 4. Slovenia 0.
Group D
Netherlands – Czechia 20:6 (6:2, 4:1, 6:1, 4:2)
Romania – Malta 12:13 (3:1,3:6, 2:4, 4:2)
Standings: 1. Netherlands 9, 2. Malta 6, 3. Romania 3, 4. Czech Republic 0
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