Series tied as handballers lose in Metzingen | OneFootball

In front of over 1,000 passionate fans in Metzingen's Öschhalle, BVB already had one foot in the semi-finals when Kelly Vollebregt scored a beautiful goal with 80 seconds remaining to make it 28-27 and Tess Lieder then made a great save to deny Metzingen down the other end. However, Dana Bleckmann hit the post with 15 seconds remaining, giving Jana Scheib the opportunity to equalise at 28-28 with nine seconds left on the clock. BVB ran out of steam in overtime, as Metzingen emerged worthy winners from a thrilling encounter with a final score of 36-32.

Dortmund's best performers were Lisa Antl, who scored nine goals, and Deborah Lassource. The Frenchwoman came into the game in the second half and netted six goals.

The scenario: After winning the first leg 32-28 a week ago, a win in game two in Metzingen would see BVB qualify for a place in the semi-finals. The play-offs are all about wins, there are no draws and goal difference is irrelevant.

Personnel matters:  As in the first game, two key players were not in the squad in Metzingen on Saturday: goalkeeper Sarah Wachter is sidelined with a knee injury, as is pivot Emma Olsson.

The match: Both teams started with aggressive defence. Haruno Sasaki played up front for BVB and Julia Behnke for Metzingen. And in contrast to the first leg, BVB did not miss the starting gun this time. Two goals from Lena Degenhardt and one from Alicia Langer made it 3-2 after five minutes, After ten minutes, a superb goal from Lois Abbingh made it 7-4. The Black & Yellows did an excellent job of converting their dangerous, high-tempo attacks into goals. Lena Degenhardt was particularly impressive. After just 12 minutes, she had already netted four goals to help BVB to an 8-4 lead at her old stomping ground.

Everything seemed to be going perfectly. After Tess Lieder saved a seven-metre penalty against Selina Kalmbach, BVB increased the lead to 10-5 thanks to another successful pass from Alicia Langer to the well-positioned centre, Lisa Antl - who also scored her fourth goal.

However, the game was far from over. Metzingen settled into the flow of things around 20 minutes in, successfully managing to cut out the passes to Lisa Antl in the pivot and reduce the deficit to 14-11 (23). BVB were increasingly being frustrated by goalkeeper Lea Schupbach. As a result, Sandra Erlingsdóttir reduced the deficit to 14-12 four minutes before the break, before Svenja Hübner equalised with 60 seconds left in the first half to tie things up at 14-14. It was anyone's game again. After Lisa Antl's fifth goal, Black & Yellows went into the break with their noses in front at 15-14.

The picture changed after the break. Henk Groener brought on Kelly Vollebregt and Deborah Lassource for Alicia Langer, who sat on the bench for the rest of the period. The home side were now better in attack against a faltering BVB defence and pulled 21-19 ahead in the 37th minute. BVB were letting the game slip out of their hands. It was time for Henk Groener to call a timeout and tell his team to prepare for the final 16 minutes: ‘Stay calm, play out the attacks neatly, get more control in defence."

The intervention paid off. The 6-0 defensive formation led to a marked improvement, Deborah Lassource scored a quickfire double to tie the game at 24-24 (46), then Dana Bleckmann put BVB back in front at 25-24.

A thrilling final spell ensued, in which Lisa Antl put BVB 27-25 in front with her seventh goal (52). Metzingen were back on level terms at 27-27 two minutes before the final whistle, before Kelly Vollebregt made it 28-27 with a superb goal from the right wing. After Dana Bleckmann hit the post (59:45), Jana Scheib equalised down the other end to make it 28-28 and force overtime. BVB offered little in the two five-minute periods and ultimately lost 32-36.

Reactions: Henk Groener: "We just can't manage to consistently deliver a good performance over 60 minutes. After a really good start, we lost our way from the 20th minute onwards, then squandered good chances up top and finally let the hectic pace get to us when we gave the ball away 15 seconds before the final whistle. Now we have to look to decide things in our favour in the third game next Saturday."

Outlook: The deciding game against TuS Metzingen will take place on Saturday, 3 May, in the Halle Wellinghofen. Should BVB qualify for the semi-finals, their opponents will be HSG Blomberg-Lippe. After winning the first leg 23-22, HSG also prevailed 29-26 in the second game in Oldenburg on Saturday.