The young Montenegrin volleyball team was defeated by the home team Bulgaria in Sofia with a score of 3:1 (21:25, 25:15, 25:23, 25:9) in the second round of the CEV zonal qualifications for the 2026 European Championship.
This was an opportunity for Milan Milošević's team to take a step towards the semi-finals against a very high-quality opponent, probably the first favorite of the tournament, but they will have to wait until the third round for the epilogue. Montenegro plays Kosovo, but is also interested in the outcome of the duel between Bulgaria and Greece.
Anastasija Koprivica and her friends started off brilliantly, the first set in the hall named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary poet and publicist Hristo Botev, as if it were a continuation of the first round match with Greece.
Montenegro made a big turnaround on Tuesday, going from 0:2 to 3:2, and filled with confidence and enthusiasm, our girls outplayed the hosts in the first set.
Points from Anastasija Koprivica and Elena Čolaković were crucial for our team to go from 11:10 to 14:10, then to 15:11, 16:12 and make a difference. The home team did come back (17:17) but never took the lead again in the first set. Points from Koprivica, then two serves from Elena Čolaković and our team found themselves in an embrace - from 22:21 they went to 25:21 and celebrated a 1:0 lead.
Already at the beginning of the second set, however, it was clear how much the grueling match with the Greeks the day before had left its mark. The Bulgarians' 4:0 lead seemed to foreshadow the end - the gap grew, to 25:15 in the end, and by the middle of that part of the game, Montenegro was already thinking about the crucial, third set.
It was truly decisive. Our girls gave everything they had, they were in the lead from the start, they controlled both the game and the score, they led 10:7, 13:9, and then a maximum of 16:10, but they couldn't hold on until the end.
The home team came back into the game, tied the score at 20:20, and then, with a 23:22 lead, tied three points for Montenegro and won the third set.
Demoralized by this epilogue, the young Montenegrin volleyball players were left without energy and the fourth set seemed to fly by them - 25:9 for Bulgaria, which had already secured a place in the semifinals with two wins.
Our players now have to recover and prepare for the third round match against Kosovo (tomorrow, 14 p.m.), and then wait for the outcome of the Bulgaria-Greece duel.
Everyone hopes that Bulgaria will justify its title as a favorite in the final round and defeat Greece, which, along with a mandatory triumph over Kosovo, would be enough to advance to the semifinals.
MONTENEGRO – BULGARIA 1:3 (25:21, 15:25, 23:25, 9:25)
Sofija - SC “Hristo Botev”. Spectators: 270. Judges: Predrag Balandžić (Serbia) and Eleni Danilidou (Greece).
Montenegro: Jovović, Lekić 1, Krasnići, Gudelj, Striković (libero), Duletić 6, Tošić (libero), Ćorović 8, Đukić 2, Peković 2, Glavanović 6, Čolaković 8, Koprivica 15, Milivojević. Coach: Milan Milošević.
Bulgaria: Aleksieva 2, Stanislavova, Velčeva 11, Todorova 13, Petrova 1, Popova 11, Genduzova, Ivanova 6, Rikova, Veneva 19, Rusinova, Stefanova (liber), Naneva 12, Koleva (libero). Coach: Atanas Petrov.
Bonus video:
