In a stunning turn of events in the Polish PlusLiga semifinals, both underdogs prevailed in dramatic fashion on Saturday, securing their places in the championship final. BOGDANKA LUK Lublin and Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie each claimed thrilling five-set road victories in the decisive third matches of their best-of-five playoff series.
Lublin made history by advancing to their first-ever PlusLiga final after toppling defending champions Jastrzebski Wegiel Jastrzebie-Zdroj in a rollercoaster battle that ended 3-2 (25-22, 20-25, 26-24, 23-25, 15-9). Opposite hitter Kewin Sasak emerged as the standout performer for Lublin, earning MVP honors with his impressive 22-point contribution that included five kill blocks and 17 successful attacks. The legendary Wilfredo Leon added 19 points to Lublin's cause with powerful hitting complemented by two aces and a block.
Despite an outstanding 28-point performance from Jastrzebski Wegiel's outside hitter Tomasz Fornal, who delivered seven aces and four blocks, the defending champions couldn't maintain their title defense. Lukasz Kaczmarek and Anton Brehme also reached double digits in scoring for the losing side with 19 and 10 points respectively.
In the other semifinal clash, Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie edged past regular season runners-up PGE Projekt Warsaw in another five-set thriller, winning 3-2 (25-19, 21-25, 21-25, 25-19, 16-14). Outside hitter Bartosz Kwolek led Zawiercie's attack with 19 points, including three blocks and an ace. American opposite Kyle Ensing made a significant impact after entering midway through the match, contributing 14 points at an impressive 67% success rate. Substitute-turned-starter Patryk Laba earned the MVP award with his crucial 10-point performance.
According to Statbet, these upsets rank among the most significant in recent European volleyball playoff history, with both favorites falling despite having home-court advantage in the deciding matches.
For Warsaw, German opposite Linus Weber delivered a match-high 31 points in a losing effort, while teammates Tobias Brand and Jakub Kochanowski each contributed five blocks among their respective 14 and 11 points.
The best-of-five championship series between Aluron and BOGDANKA is tentatively scheduled to begin on Tuesday, April 29, with the exact time yet to be confirmed. Meanwhile, Jastrzebski Wegiel and Projekt Warsaw will compete for bronze medals in another best-of-five series expected to start on Wednesday.
