Mixed luck for State eves; men lose to AP

The State women started their day with a convincing 3-0 victory over Maharashtra before going down fighting 1-3 to neighbours Andhra Pradesh in Group A, while the men crashed to their second successive Group A defeat, losing 1-3 to Services.

Despite being tested by Maharashtra in the opening set, Karnataka women held their nerve in winning it 25-19 before clinching the second easily aat 25-13 and wrapping up a comfortable 25-18 win in the third.

The State women made a perfect start to their evening match against AP, taking the opener 25-20. However, AP bounced back in style and seized the crucial moments for the remainder of the tie, winning the next three sets 25-19, 25-22, 25-22.

Karnataka men’s display against Services mirrored that their women against AP. They won the first set 25-17 but succumbed under pressure while losing the next three 25-19, 25-15, 25-21.

Results: Men: Group A: Punjab bt Railways 25-17, 25-20, 25-16; Services bt Karnataka 17-25, 25-19, 25-15, 25-21.

Group B: Tamil Nadu bt Kerala 25-18, 25-17, 19-25, 33-31.
Group C: Chhattisgarh bt West Bengal 27-25, 25-22, 25-19; Jharkhand bt Andaman 25-17, 25-12, 25-11.

Group F: Maharashtra bt Bihar 25-14, 19-25, 25-13, 25-15; Rajasthan w/o Pondicherry.
Women: Group A: Karnataka bt Maharashtra 25-19, 25-13, 25-18; Andhra Pradesh bt Karnataka 20-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-22; Railways bt Maharashtra 25-9, 25-15, 25-10.
Group B: Kerala bt Chandigarh 25-12, 25-12, 25-14.

Group C: Punjab bt Mizoram 30-28, 25-21, 25-9; Himachal Pradesh w/o Goa.
Group D: Haryana bt Orissa 25-17, 25-8, 25-17; Jharkhand bt Rajasthan 25-13, 25-16, 25-20.