Two African sides - Angola and Guinea - secured their second wins at the 2024 IHF Women's World Championship, while Serbia finally broke their losing streak with a 29:26 win against Czechia, as Spain set a record win, 44:14, against Algeria, in the first matches of the Day 6 in the President's Cup.

PRESIDENT’S CUP
GROUP III

Czechia vs Serbia 26:29 (17:17)

With three double-digits losses in the preliminary round against France, Germany and Spain, Serbia were still looking for their maiden win at the 2024 IHF Women’s Junior World Championship, and they secured it with a strong display in the second half against an uninspired Czechia team.

For most of the first half, Czechia, which a 4:0 unanswered run to take the lead, kept the match under wraps, delivering a very good performance, one of their most consistent so far at North Macedonia 2024.

But as Serbia finished the first half with a 3:0 run, inspired by two goals from right wing Dunja Radević, the game was tied at the break, 17:17. That 3:0 run morphed into a 9:0 unanswered run, as Serbia ran riot in attack, with Czechia failing to deliver the goods, as their 15 turnovers really hampered their chances.

Czechia finally scored after nine minutes and 49 seconds, but by that time, Serbia were already up, 22:17, a lead which they never relinquished. In the last 23 minutes of the match, Czechia scored only eight times, as left back Nevena Todorovski and Radević combined for 13 goals, to lift Serbia to their maiden win in the competition, 29:26

Alkaloid Player of the Match: Nevena Todorovski (Serbia)

Spain vs Algeria 44:14 (20:6)

A 12:1 lead after 15 minutes clearly set the tone for what was going to happen in this match, where Algeria could simply not match the output delivered by the European team, which had already won a match, against Serbia, in the preliminary round.

12 of the 13 outfield players scored for Spain, with left wing Garoa Sarrionandia-Ibarra Lezea, left back Alba Tort Net and left wing Lucia Laguna Aranda combining for 19 goals, as Spain were leading by 14 goals at the break, 20:6.

The European side continued to dominate in defence and on fast breaks, scoring eight of their 44 goals on fast breaks, as they cruised to a record-setting performance, breaking the largest number of goals scored in a single match, set against Australia, in 2012, by a single goal.

On the other hand, the African side conceded their fourth loss in as many matches and have only virtual chances to avoid placing last in this group, as they had only three players scoring in this match – six goals from Hanane Makdoud, five goals from Sarah Azzi and three goals from Sanae Naceur.

Moreover, this was both the largest loss and the match with the largest number of goals conceded by Algeria at North Macedonia 2024, with Spain cruising to a 44:14 win.

After the first round of Group III of the President’s Cup, Spain have four points, but will face Czechia in the last round on Tuesday. Czechia are now tied with Serbia for the second place, but have little chances to seal the first place, as they need a big win against Spain, provided Serbia beat Algeria and the group ends in a three-way tie.

Alkaloid Player of the Match: Marian Mera Amoedo (Spain)

GROUP IV
Guinea vs United States of America 22:15 (11:6)

After a win against Uzbekistan in their last match of the group phase, Guinea opened the President’s Cup with another victory, as they had the upper hand against the United States of America and ultimately won by seven goals, 22:15. 

Left back Mama Konate became the top scorer of the African side, as she scored six goals. Her teammates M’mahawa Konte and Fatoumata Soumah did well between the posts, combining for 14 saves and contributing to their team’s success.

The USA team’s goalkeeper Lani Gronwald actually had an even better performance, as she stopped 18 shots for a 48% save rate. She was named Alkaloid Player of the Match but could not help her team avoid their fourth straight defeat.

The African side will face continental champions Angola in the last match of the President's Cup, as they both are on four points.

Alkaloid Player of the Match: Lani Gronwald (United States of America)

Angola vs Uzbekistan 43:18 (21:9)

Just like Guinea, the African champions also won their second match at North Macedonia 2024, this time beating Uzbekistan. Angola hit the 40-goal mark and kept a chance to triumph in the President’s Cup, and they will progress to the Placement Matches 17/20 with a win in the continental derby against Guinea on Tuesday.

Similar to the previous encounters, some Angola’s players put on some solid individual performance. In particular, left back Bernadeth Belo scored seven goals, all in the first half, just as many as Lurdes Pedro, while goalkeepers Carla Mulamba and Juliana Queta combined for 17 saves. 

Uzbekistan put some pressure on their rivals in the opening 15 minutes, as Angola led by just three goals, 9:6, midway through the first half. But goals from Belo and a number of Mulamba’s saves help helped the Africans to enjoy a 5:0 run, and they kept the momentum until the break, leading by 12 goals.

In the second half, Mulamba was replaced by Queta, who also denied Uzbekistan’s attack time after time. The Asian side suffered their fourth straight loss, and they will meet the United States of America on Tuesday hoping to end that losing run. 

Alkaloid Player of the Match: Carla Mulamba (Angola)