Köniz storm to 3-0 victory in volleyball cup final

Köniz's Mirjam Keller (left) blocks a shot from Schaffhausen's Barbara Widmer during the final Keystone

Köniz won the final of the women's volleyball Swiss Cup on Saturday for the second time since 1999 while Näfels walked away with the men's trophy.

In front of a 2,000 crowd in Fribourg, the team from canton Bern stormed to victory against their opponents, Kanti Schaffhausen, who are the current holders of the title.

Köniz needed just 56 minutes to win the match 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-21) and take back the title snatched away from them in 2000.

Despite his team’s victory, Köniz’s trainer, Marc Gerson, seemed less than impressed by his team’s performance. “We won,” he said after the match, “but we didn’t play well”.

The clash between the two premier Swiss female volleyball teams was one-sided from the moment the whistle was blown. Köniz relied on its star Latvian trio of Anita Ackermann, Sandra Breiksa and Janete Strasdina, while Kanti Schaffhausen looked out of their depth without star player and Swiss international, Petra Scherrer.

Twenty-two year old Scherrer, who tore a ligament during a training session prior to the final, could only watch her team’s defeat from the sidelines.

In the men’s cup final, Näfels beat Lutry-Lavaux 3-0 (25-17, 29-27, 25-23). The men from canton Glaris played the match in St Croix, canton Vaud, with a full team, while Lutry-Lavaux were down one player.

The two teams also faced each other in the 1998 finals.

swissinfo with agencies