Tenerife completed the list of participants in the Quarter Final Stage of the Men’s Conference Cup.
The Spanish team defeated ZV De Zaan (Netherlands) 15:12 today, securing 2nd place in Group B (Split) and earning the last available berth for the Top 8 round.
The remaining seven teams that will play in the next stage qualified after Saturday’s matches. Today, they competed for the top positions in their respective groups.
In the Greek derby, Apollon Smyrnis triumphed over Panionios 15:13, finishing in 1st place in Group A in Potsdam. Honved secured the top spot in Group C by defeating De Akker 15:10. Posillipo beat Mataro 12:10 in front of its home crowd in a crucial match for 1st place in Group D in Naples. Mornar confirmed its top position in the group in Split with an easy 17:9 victory over Rapid Bucharest.
The qualified teams
Group winners: Apollon (GRE), Mornar (CRO), Honved (HUN), Posillipo (ITA)
Runners-up: Panionios (GRE), Tenerife (ESP), De Akker (ITA), Mataro (ESP).
In the Quarter Final Stage, the teams will be split into two groups. The tournaments will be played between March 20 and 22. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Final Four (May 2 and 3)
2026 Conference Cup, Stage 2, Day 4
GROUP A (Potsdam)
Panionios – Apollon 13:15 (3:4, 3:3, 4:5, 3:3)
Panionios: Mourikis 6, Bitsakos 2, Gounas 2, Suzuki 1, Takata 1, Bitsakos 1.
Apollon Smyrnis: Daube 4, Kapotsis 2, Solanakis 2, Laskaridis 1, Rompopoulos 1, Gardikas 1
OSC Potsdam – Partizan 6:16 (1:4, 3:5, 1:5, 1:2)
OSC Potsdam: Hofmann 3, Taubert 2, Goethke 1.
Partizan: Djokanovic 3, V. Bodiroga 2, K. Bodiroga 2, Jaukovic 2, Papic 2, Bozovic 2, Durutovic 2, Cutajar 1.
Apollon won three points in the Greek derby and finished in 1st place. The game was an even contest, but Panionios took the lead only a few times in the early stages. For the last time, the teams were tied late into the second quarter – 6:6. Apollon went on a 3:0 run, building a 9:6 win, which was crucial for its win. Panionios chased its domestic rival, but couldn’t catch up with Apollon.
Partzan proved too strong for OSC Potsdam.
Standings: 1. Apollon 9, 2. Panionios 6, 3. Partizan 3, 4. OSC Potsdam 0.
GROUP B (Split)
ZV De Zaan – Tenerife 12:15 (3:3, 4:5, 1:4, 4:3)
ZV De Zaan:Garancsy 5, Bakker 4, Brantjes 1, Janssen 1, Lucas 1.
Tenerife: Gorria 6, Araya 3, Diaz 2, De Weerd 2, Gonzalez 1, Garcia 1.
Mornar – Rapid Bucharest 17:9 (5:1, 4:4, 2:2, 6:2)
Mornar: Hrvatic 5, Stojanac 3, Penava 3, Katunaric 2, R.Akrap 1, Omrcen 1, Zivkovic 1, Buselic 1.
Rapid: Goreta 2, Rath 2, Vrbnjak 2, Kovats 1, Kari 1, Sachetti 1.
Even though De Zaan opened the crucial game of the 4th day better than Tenerife, the Spanish team was ahead for most of the match. The Dutch took a 2:0 and 3:1 lead. ZV De Zaan scored the first goal in the second quarter for 4:3. However, Tenerife then made a vital 4:1 series in 03:16 minutes. The Spaniards established a 7:5 lead in the 14th minute. ZV De Zaan fought hard, but didn’t equalize.
Mornar made no mistake against Rapid Bucharest to keep the top spot.
Standings: 1. Mornar 8, 2. Tenerife 6, 3. ZV De Zaan 4, 4. Rapid 0.
GROUP C (Montpellier)
Honved – De Akker 15:10 (5:2, 4:1, 3:4, 3:3)
Honved: Moskov 4, Kevi 2, Vadovics 2, Sugar 2, Ekler 2, Bencz 1, Vekony 1, Kolos 1.
De Akker: Di Murro 3, Lucci 2, Bragantini 1, Campopiano 1, Milakovic 1, Erdelyi 1, Urbinati 1.
Montpellier – Primorje 16:21 (1:6, 2:8, 6:3, 7:4)
Montpellier: Vix 3, Pal Antal 3, Stojanovic 3, Krekovic 2, Agrefilo 2, Ben Romdhame 2, Radovanlija 1.
Primorje: Crippa 4, Seman 3, Dragosevic 2, Dujmic 2, Brubnjak 2, Rakovac 2, Burburan 2, Babic 2, Snel 1, Survek 1.
A-Polo Sport Management bye
Honved secured the top spot in Group C in the first half of the game against De Akker. The Hungarians dominated the first two quarters and entered the second half leading 9:3. In the remaining 16 minutes, the margin never dropped below four goals.
The match between Montpellier and Primorje followed a similar pattern. The Croats scored 14 goals and conceded only three in the first half. Early in the third period, Primorje extended its lead to 15:3, leaving Montpellier with no way back into the game. Although the French team performed well in the second half, it was only enough to avoid a double-digit defeat.
Standings: 1. Honved 11,2. De Akker 8, 3. A-Polo 7, 4. Primorje 4, 5. Montpellier 0
GROUP D (Naples)
Posillipo – Mataro 12:10 (1:3, 4:1, 4:3, 3:3)
Posillipo: Renzuto Iodice 5, D.Radovic 3, Porzio 1, Aiello 1, Coccovillo 1, Rocchino 1.
Mataro: Aguirre 2, Bertran 2, Rodriguez 2, Patchaliev 1, Gil 1, Veich 1, Castro 1.
Dinamo – Sete 14:16 (4:2, 4:2, 4:7, 2:5)
Dinamo Tbilisi: Tkeshalashvili 5, Bucan 3, Imnaishvili 3, Kurashvili 2, Draskovic 1.
Sete: Tomic 4, Radojevic 3, Sauton 2, De Bie 2, Vasin 2, Gomes 2, Karsenti 1.
Crvena Zvezda bye
Mataro shocked Posillipo and the home team’s fans in the opening minutes of the derby, which decided 1st place in the group. The Spaniards had a 4:1 lead early in the second quarter. Posillipo found its rhythm in the last four minutes of the first half and turned around a 3-goal deficit to a 5:4 lead. At the beginning of the third quarter, Mataro equalized at 5:5. Posillipo responded with two goals and went to 7:5. The teams fought a big battle until the end, but the hosts controlled the result.
Sete recorded its first win at the tournament, defeating Dinamo after a great comeback in the second half of the game.
Standings: 1. Posillipo 12, 2.Mataro 9, 3. Crvena Zvezda 5, 4. Sete 4, 5. Dinamo 0.
More articles about the Conference Cup
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