The Radnički water polo team advanced to the finals of the Regional League final tournament, after defeating Šabac Elixir with a convincing 15:9 in front of a full crowd at the Kragujevac swimming pool. The Kragujevac team will play against Primorac in the grand final on Sunday at 8:30 p.m., which they have already defeated four times this season.
Less uncertainty was expected, although Šabac tried their best to tire out Radnicki. They were close at one point when they were losing 8:7, but they conceded two goals by the end of the third quarter and after that there was no doubt.
Šabac did take the lead with a nice goal from the enthusiastic Stanojević, but Radnički was slowly rising. Vlahopulos quickly equalized. A goalless period followed, and then Prlainović started the home team’s series 2.23 before the first break. The best player of the match, Vapenski, continued with two goals, before Stojanović managed to reduce the home team’s lead to two goals from a distance before the siren.
Šabac completely exploded in the second eight minutes. After Vapenski’s goal for 6:3, Repanović and Stojanović took advantage of the relaxation of the tournament hosts. Experienced Prlainović, with one player more, pulled off a poorly organized attack for 7:5. Novaković outsmarted Filipović so that the finish was again in Vapenski’s favor, so the Kragujevac team went on a big break with a plus two.
Radnički did not shine, on the contrary. Šabac came close to 8:7 through Maćić. Then Dedović and Dadvani forced coach Ličanin to replace Đurović with Tomić. Things got heated in the pool, Petar Jakšić was sent off with the right to be substituted. By the last break, Radnički had the lead at 10:7.
Murisic earned a five-pointer after a foul by Barac, Prlainovic was precise for 11:7. Here all the dilemmas are resolved. Radnicki can be satisfied with a convincing victory in the end, the final against Primorac will demand more. Sabac showed that it has quality and the fight for third place is a big challenge.
The MVP of the match was Boris Vapenski, who was also the most efficient with four goals, while Andrija Prlainović followed with three. Nemanja Stanojević and Ognjen Stojanović had the same performance for Šabac.
Radnicki – Sabac 15:9 (4:2, 4:4, 2:1, 5:2)
STAFF: Filipović, S. Rašović 1, Dedović 1, Randelović 2, P. Jakšić, Pijetlović, Prlainović 3, N. Jakšić, Murišić, Vapenski 4, Vlahopulos 2, V. Rašović, Todorovski, Dadvani 2. Coach: Uroš Stevanović.
ŠABAC: Đurović, Novaković 1, Stanojević 3, Repanović 1, Lazić, Gavrilović, Barać, Moračanin, Mačić 1, Kovačević, Stojanović 3, Korac, Tomic, Toholj. Coach: Nemanja Ličanin.
