On this day…
Amarcord and volleyball birthdays, Manuel Zlatanov, 2026 AVC Asian Beach Volleyball Tour and a couple of records!
Welcome to the 117th Episode of VolleyBar!
On October 27, 2020, the Swiss town of Amriswil hosted a three-team tournament in Pool H of the 2020–21 CEV Champions League preliminary rounds, with Dinamo Moscow, Trentino Itas and the Swiss hosts competing for a place in the next stage.
Dinamo opened the tournament with a comfortable straight-sets victory over Amriswil. Yaroslav Podlesnykh led the Russian side with 13 points, while Thomas Zass was the Swiss team’s top scorer with the same total. Dinamo controlled the match through stronger blocking and reception, setting up the following day’s highly anticipated clash with Trentino. 
The tournament is an interesting Swiss volleyball anniversary: all three teams were playing a compact qualification event, with only the pool winner advancing. It also provides a snapshot of European club volleyball during the pandemic, when preliminary rounds were organised in centralised tournament formats rather than the usual home-and-away schedule.
One of the strongest historical match-day collections found for October 27 comes from the fifth round of the 2024/25 SuperLega season. Six matches were played, including a major clash between Trentino and Perugia, ended in four sets in favor of the visiting side, 25:19, 22:25, 24:26, 19:25.
Trentino took the opening set, but Perugia recovered to win the next three, including a closely contested third set. The victory was an important early-season result between two leading Italian clubs. 
The American libero Dustin Watten was born on October 27, 1986 and turns 40 today.
He represented the United States in international competition and built a substantial career in European club volleyball. A specialist in reception and defence, he is one of the more recognisable American liberos of his generation.
Setter Metty Laualiki, born on October 27, 1998 in Nouméa, has represented New Caledonia, including at the 2023 Pacific Games and the 2026 Oceania Zonal Championship.
Back to the present, Massimo Botti, Germany’s head coach, believes that 18-year-old Manuel Zlatanov has the potential to become a starter for the Italian national team, provided nothing unexpected happens. Speaking on After Hours, the Italian SuperLega’s discussion show, Botti praised the young Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza outside hitter following his impressive performances at the start of the season. He highlighted Zlatanov’s all-round ability, pointing to his impact in attack, serving, reception and blocking. According to Botti, the youngster displays such maturity and versatility that his age would be difficult to guess without seeing his ID. The grandson of Bulgarian volleyball legend Dimitar Zlatanov is already attracting significant attention, with his performances suggesting he could eventually play an increasingly important role for Italy.
All three podium spots at last week’s men’s Suma Open stop on the 2026 AVC Asian Beach Volleyball Tour in Kobe were earned by Australia’s D’Artagnan Potts & Jack Pearse and Joshua Howat & Finley Bennett picked up gold and bronze, respectively, while Japan’s Kai Kurokawa & Ryuichi Adachi pleased the home fans with silver.
Seeded second in the main draw bracket, Australia’s D’Artagnan Potts & Jack Pearse won all five of their matches in Kobe and topped the final standings. They lost only one set throughout the tournament in the 2-1 (21:23, 21:14, 15:9) semifinal win over fellow Australians Joshua Howat & Finley Bennett, seeded fifth. This was the only defeat Howat & Bennett suffered in the six games they played in Japan!
Both pairs went on to sweep the medal matches. Potts & Pearse produced a 2-0 (21:19, 21:16) success of top-seeded home favorites Kai Kurokawa & Ryuichi Adachi in the gold medal showdown, while Howat & Bennett claimed the bronze medals after a 2-0 (21:17, 21:14) shutout of eighth-seeded Imam Ahmad Faisal & Fairuz Bayhaqly of Indonesia in the third-place playoff.
Bracket leaders Kai & Adachi reached the final unbeaten in the four matches on the way. They crowned their victorious run with a 2-0 (21:18, 21:18) semifinal win over Imam & Fairuz.
If in Greece eleven consecutive points in a deciding tie-break turned an almost certain defeat into a remarkable 3–2 victory over Irida Nea Smyrni, sending Moschato into the semi-finals of the ESPEDA Women’s Cup, No. 1 Nebraska volleyball just tied the program record with their 52nd consecutive regular-season win after sweeping USC 25:12, 25:16, 25:13.
The Huskers have not lost a regular-season match since November 29, 2024. They’re 10-0 in the Big Ten and still haven’t been seriously challenged!
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