The team of Francesco Pugliatti, Nicola D'Andrea and Riccardo Germana celebrated victory at the second stop on the 2023 Absolute Italian Snow Volleyball Championship tour, which took place on Sunday at an altitude of 1,800 metres above sea level in Linguaglossa.

It was the second time the small town on the slopes of Mount Etna hosted a national tour event, after doing so in 2022 as well.

Five teams took part in the single round-robin stage of the men’s tournament in Sicily. To triumph with the trophy, D'Andrea – Germana – Pugliatti won six consecutive matches, dropping only a couple of sets along the way. In the final, they produced a 2-1 (15-11, 11-15, 15-10) victory over the squad made up of Andrea Sarchioto, Federico Andronico and Giosue Andronico, after having already beaten that team once during the pool stage.

After also losing to Andrea Roccazzella, Calogero Graffeo, Leonardo Piazza and Salvatore Giovanni Trombetta in three sets during the round-robin, Andronico – Andronico – Sarchioto got back at them with a hard-fought 2-1 (15-13, 16-18, 15-10) semifinal win to reach the gold medal match and eventually secure the silver.

Graffeo – Piazza – Roccazzella – Trombetta made sure to climb the podium as well after a 2-0 (15-11, 15-10) shutout of Gabriele Cossentino, Francesco Sutera and Roberto Polimeno in the bronze medal match. Born in 2010, Calogero Graffeo was the youngest participant in the tournament.

In the other semifinal, D'Andrea – Germana – Pugliatti also defeated Cossentino – Polimeno – Sutera in straight sets, 2-0 (15-11, 15-7).

The fifth place in the final standings went to Andrea Lavafila, Angelo Marra, Davide Aloisio and Giuseppe Staiti.

The second tournament of the 2023 Absolute Italian Snow Volleyball Championship tour took place in picturesque Linguaglossa PHOTOS | FIPAV

The awards were handed to the winners by Municipality of Linguaglossa Councilor Alessio Musumeci, Italian Volleyball Federation (FIPAV) Messina Territorial Committee President Alessandro Zurro and FIPAV Sicilia Regional Councilor Speranza Maiello.

The third stop on the 2023 Absolute Italian Snow Volleyball Championship tour will be held in Aprica on 11 and 12 March. The final event will take place in the iconic Prato Nevoso from 31 March to 2 April.