47:57-defeat against relegated team Rosenheim – showdown against Ulm has to fix it
RSV Lahn-Dill II are in a really tight spot now. After losing 47:57 (12:8/21:21/31:39) in their make up game against SB DJK Rosenheim there is now the very real threat of sliding down into Regionalliga. This can only be avided with a win against Ulm Sabres in the last game of the season.
"We have to appreciate, that Rosenheim and especially Wernberger and Ismail have delivered a very strong game today." said RSV-Coach Daniel Stange, showing his respect for the opposition. "We were not able to put on any pressure, on neither side of the court. We have to look at it honestly: then we’re not at the right level for the second league if we can’t manage that."
And all this despite the fact that trio Gerlach, Huber and Kind scored well above their averages, picking up the gap left by key player Nico Dreimueller, who could not travel with his team this weekend due to his end-of-school examinations lying ahead. The team was certainly missing his quality and spirit though.
In the beginning it still looked as if RSV II might be able to manage, despite a rather rigid start. The Middle Hesse team got their lead back quickly (8:4, 6th min) after the first couple of points by Josef Wernberger, and defended their lead throughout the first quarter. A 5:0 run at the start of the second quarter got Rosenheim ahead for the first time though (12:13, 12th min), and from then onwards RSV II were struggling to get focused and successful attacks against their opposition.
Nevertheless, it was enough to get ahead once again (21:17, 19th min), but Wernberger and Schmid managed to tie the score before halftime. RSV Captain Christopher Huber was able to score after the changeover, but after that his team stayed without points for nearly seven minutes, whilst Rosenheim pushed the score to 23:31 (27th min). In this phase only their Captain scored for his team, and they did not get into the flow again in the fourth quarter.
Only when the team started playing a bit more aggressively did the points difference shrink a bit. Carsten Crombach and Marian Kind managed a 8:0-run, and the game seemed open again a 43:48 (38th min). But then Sercan Ismail scored a three just before the clock ran out, smashing any hopes RSV II might still have had left. Their last chance were some tactical fouls, but whilst Rosenheim didn’t show any weaknesses, RSV only scored one last time before the final whistle.
This means that there is only one last chance for Daniel Stange’s team next Saturday, when they will be playing against Ulm Sabres at five o’clock in August-Bebel-Sporthalle. A defeat would mean relegation to Regionalliga, only to be saved by the possibility of an open spot in the second league.
Rosenheim: Josef Wernberger (22), Sercan Ismail (11/1 Dreier), Michael Schmid jr (11), Clemens Navratil (8), Selman Can (4), Randolph Uhl (1), Michael Schmid sen. (n.e.).
Lahn-Dill: Kai Gerlach (19), Christopher Huber (14), Marian Kind (10), Carsten Crombach (4), Sebastian Arras, Selina Rausch.