HCL fights bravely, but derby defeat against Halle-Neustadt!

HCL fights bravely, but derby defeat against Halle-Neustadt!

Leipzig.An exciting derby on Advent Sunday ended for HC Leipzig with a narrow 28:30 defeat against SV Union Halle-Neustadt. The 827 spectators in the Brüderhalle were electrified until the last minute, when Marlene Tucholke made the score 23:21 in the 48th minute. But despite the strong performance of the young Leipzig women, it was not enough to win against the league leaders from Halle.

“We ultimately failed again today because of ourselves,” explained HCL coach Erik Töpfer after the game. Ines Seidler, the Halle team's coach, also confirmed the balance of the game: "It was absolutely a game of equals. The one or two more mistakes by the HCL tipped the scales for us." The Leipzig team started nervously and missed a few simple balls, but were able to keep up until the end and had the chance to equalize shortly before the end. “This is also a maturation process,” emphasized Töpfer, while praising the young players who had to prove themselves in this intense atmosphere.

Diving man fearless in every duel

Particularly noteworthy is Marlene Tucholke, who at just 17 years old already plays a key role in the team and scored eight goals against the Wildcats from Halle. “We saw that we could keep up with the leaders,” said the talented backcourt player. Her experiences from the U18 World Cup in China certainly helped her to assert herself in such pressure situations. Lara Tauchmann, who has just recovered from a cruciate ligament injury, also showed great courage and kept the team in the game with three important goals in the final phase. “Lara always goes forward and plays with an incredible amount of heart,” praised Erik Töpfer. The Leipzig women now have to pool their strengths, because the next strong opponent, TG Nürtingen, is waiting for them on the next Sunday in Advent.