Greens beat Iraklis and regain title
Following a one-year absence, Panathinaikos returned to the top of domestic league volleyball last night with a 3-2 away win over Iraklis for a 3-1 win in their best-of-five final series. Iraklis, a losing finalist in European club-level competition over the past two seasons, won the domestic title last year. With several of Iraklis’s imported stars planning to depart now that the season has ended, last night’s defeat could mark the end of an era for the Thessaloniki club. Iraklis won the opening set with a 25-20 score. But Panathinaikos responded by taking the second set 25-19. Taking advantage of the home team’s problems both in defense and attack, Panathinaikos also won the third set, 25-16, to establish a 2-1 lead. Iraklis reacted with a 25-21 win in the fourth set, but Panathinaikos held on for a 15-13 score in the decider.
