Bravely dragging himself out of bed at 10 a.m. on a Saturday morning, a Delta correspondent was courtside to watch Delft’s Punch D5 ladies volleyball team fight for survival in a regional league match against Pijlslag D1.
Volleyball’s a true team sport. The cliche of “the chain is as strong as its weakest link” is absolutely valid here: a volleyball team is totally dependent on each member. It’s also a very tactical game, the chess of team sports, and in both games, whoever makes fewer mistakes wins.
There’s an atmosphere of excitement among the Puncher’s as the match against Pijlslag D1 begins. The Punch D5 ladies team is complete – all 10 players are fit to play, an obvious moral boost. Soon after the first set starts, however, Punch trails 2:5. The gap grows to 8:13, and Punch D5’s coach calls time-out – time to change tactics. After the time-out, Pijlslag D1 extends its lead to ten points. It doesn’t look good for the home team. But then, unexpectedly, the Punch ladies break Pijlslag’s serve and only trail 15:20. Now it’s Pijlslag D1 that’s forced to call time-out. Punch D5 closes to 20:23, but then lose serve and the set.
Punch D5 opens the second set furiously, quickly leading 4:1; but then lose the lead just as quickly, calling time-out at 4:5. The score swings back and forth, Punch’s lead slowly growing. At 18:13 for Punch, the visitors call time-out and come back sharper, tying the game at 19:19. Pijlslag D1 wins the tiebreak (26:24). Punch D5 is 0:2 behind in sets.
As the third set begins, Punch D5’s coach inserts some fresh players. But after a strong start, the Punch ladies lose a 3-point lead, their coach calling time-out at 6:8. Nothing is working for the home team: Punch D5, now trailing 8:17, need a miracle. But Pijlslag seems to have luck on their side today, as close balls keep falling on the Puncher’s side of the net. The final score of the third set is 14:25…a disappointing 0:3 sets loss for Punch D5.
Crucial moments
After the match, Uchi Chafboue, an Informatics student from Peru who has played for Punch D5 for four years, offered her thoughts on what went wrong. “The last two seasons we promoted twice to a higher league; apparently we’re having difficulties adjusting to the higher level,” Chafboue says. “It also seems as if we don’t have the motivation we used to…at crucial moments, things just don’t work.”
With all the various sports offered at TU Delft, why did she choose volleyball? “I played before I came to Delft and knew it was a very social game,” she says. “So it’s not only the sport…the gezelligheid is very important at Punch. Every Friday we go to De Boot, an actual boat that Punch uses as our club bar, where we celebrate our victories and also drink away our defeats.”
Playing the game
Delft offers several options for those wanting to play volleyball. Punch, founded in 1950, is the biggest student’s volleyball society in Holland with some 300 members. Everyone can join a practice or one of the teams (Punch has 13 teams for lads and 11 teams for ladies). Ariston, a smaller (80 members) and younger volleyball club, has somewhat older members, mostly MSc’s, PhD’s and TU employees. Ariston also plays beach volleyball in the summer, when some 12 beach volleyball tournaments are held on Holland’s sunny beaches. Annual memberships cost 52 euro at Punch and 65 euro at Ariston, plus you need a sports center card. According to Joost Halkes, secretary of Ariston’s board, communication between Dutch and foreign players isn’t a problem: “After three games you know what los, jij, buiten or midden mean. However, be warned, a serve under the net will cost you a crate of beer!”
The Punch D5 ladies team plays a crucial degradation match against Visage Vbg D7 at the TU Sports Center, Hall 5, on Friday, 8 April at 19:00. Come and cheer for these brave ladies as they battle for survival!
Volleyball’s a true team sport. The cliche of “the chain is as strong as its weakest link” is absolutely valid here: a volleyball team is totally dependent on each member. It’s also a very tactical game, the chess of team sports, and in both games, whoever makes fewer mistakes wins.
There’s an atmosphere of excitement among the Puncher’s as the match against Pijlslag D1 begins. The Punch D5 ladies team is complete – all 10 players are fit to play, an obvious moral boost. Soon after the first set starts, however, Punch trails 2:5. The gap grows to 8:13, and Punch D5’s coach calls time-out – time to change tactics. After the time-out, Pijlslag D1 extends its lead to ten points. It doesn’t look good for the home team. But then, unexpectedly, the Punch ladies break Pijlslag’s serve and only trail 15:20. Now it’s Pijlslag D1 that’s forced to call time-out. Punch D5 closes to 20:23, but then lose serve and the set.
Punch D5 opens the second set furiously, quickly leading 4:1; but then lose the lead just as quickly, calling time-out at 4:5. The score swings back and forth, Punch’s lead slowly growing. At 18:13 for Punch, the visitors call time-out and come back sharper, tying the game at 19:19. Pijlslag D1 wins the tiebreak (26:24). Punch D5 is 0:2 behind in sets.
As the third set begins, Punch D5’s coach inserts some fresh players. But after a strong start, the Punch ladies lose a 3-point lead, their coach calling time-out at 6:8. Nothing is working for the home team: Punch D5, now trailing 8:17, need a miracle. But Pijlslag seems to have luck on their side today, as close balls keep falling on the Puncher’s side of the net. The final score of the third set is 14:25…a disappointing 0:3 sets loss for Punch D5.
Crucial moments
After the match, Uchi Chafboue, an Informatics student from Peru who has played for Punch D5 for four years, offered her thoughts on what went wrong. “The last two seasons we promoted twice to a higher league; apparently we’re having difficulties adjusting to the higher level,” Chafboue says. “It also seems as if we don’t have the motivation we used to…at crucial moments, things just don’t work.”
With all the various sports offered at TU Delft, why did she choose volleyball? “I played before I came to Delft and knew it was a very social game,” she says. “So it’s not only the sport…the gezelligheid is very important at Punch. Every Friday we go to De Boot, an actual boat that Punch uses as our club bar, where we celebrate our victories and also drink away our defeats.”
Playing the game
Delft offers several options for those wanting to play volleyball. Punch, founded in 1950, is the biggest student’s volleyball society in Holland with some 300 members. Everyone can join a practice or one of the teams (Punch has 13 teams for lads and 11 teams for ladies). Ariston, a smaller (80 members) and younger volleyball club, has somewhat older members, mostly MSc’s, PhD’s and TU employees. Ariston also plays beach volleyball in the summer, when some 12 beach volleyball tournaments are held on Holland’s sunny beaches. Annual memberships cost 52 euro at Punch and 65 euro at Ariston, plus you need a sports center card. According to Joost Halkes, secretary of Ariston’s board, communication between Dutch and foreign players isn’t a problem: “After three games you know what los, jij, buiten or midden mean. However, be warned, a serve under the net will cost you a crate of beer!”
The Punch D5 ladies team plays a crucial degradation match against Visage Vbg D7 at the TU Sports Center, Hall 5, on Friday, 8 April at 19:00. Come and cheer for these brave ladies as they battle for survival!
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