Postal reign supreme

Defending champs retain title; Sports Hostel women triumph

Defending champions Postal made a valiant comeback from a set down to defeat ITI and retain their title in the State ‘A’ division volleyball championship at the Sree Kanteerava indoor courts here on Monday.

Led by A Karthik, Postal, who are also the reigning champions in the Association Cup, overcame their opponents 21-25, 28-26, 25-17, 25-22.

ITI made a strong start to the game as former India junior all-rounder Anup D’costa sent across a barrage of smashes to which the Postal had no answers. With the scores 20-apiece, Anup, along with Ashwal Rai, defended resolutely and attacked fiercely to ensure a 25-21 win in the first set.

It was the first time that Postal had a lost a set in the tournament, and their response was admirable. Karthik began to find his feet with a few good smashes but his side’s unforced errors kept ITI in the game. ITI looked to have sealed the set at 24-21 but two game-changing blocks from Raison shifted the momentum in favour of the champions.

A couple of rare errors from Anup, who missed his smashes, allowed Postal to draw level, winning the second set 28-26.

Buoyed by their success, Postal were ruthless in the third set as their skipper continued his fine form in attack and defence. The story was quite the contrary with ITI as their defence began to develop cracks, with elementary errors creeping in. Even Anup, visibly tired, could not lift his team as they conceded the third set 17-25.

ITI needed to stage a comeback if they were to stay in the contest but they found themselves too far behind at 5-11. The contest, though, was far from over as they staged a minor comeback, courtesy of Anup and the scores were tied at 20 each.

Karthik then stepped up to prove his mettle while setting up three of the last five points to power Postal to a 25-22 win.

Postal coach Lakshminarayan commended his team on their effort while also being critical of the first set loss. “It is a great achievement to retain the title. It was not easy for the team as they played a semifinal earlier today. Our defensive organisation was not at its best and hence we lost the first set, but it was a good performance to come back after that,” he said.

Earlier, Mysore Sports Hostel routed Physical Education Sports Academy (PESA) 25-20, 25-13 to win the women’s title.

Results: Men: Final: Postal bt ITI 21-25, 28-26, 25-17, 25-22.

For third place: MEG bt BSNL 25-17, 29-31, 25-18, 25-20.

Semifinals: Postal bt BSNL 25-18, 25-14, 25-15; ITI bt MEG 23-25, 17-25, 25-21, 25-21, 15-9.

Women: Final: MSH bt PESA 25-20, 25-13. For third place: Belgaum bt BMS College 25-13, 25-19.