Zonzamas Plus Car Lanzarote is good at tying down teams that lead the División de Honor Oro standings, just as they did with Morvedre four weeks ago when the Saguntine team was leading the league. Now it was Sporting La Rioja's turn to pay with a defeat on their first day as leaders.
After a first goal on a counterattack by the Cuban Gleynis Reyes, came the first goal of Gabi Romero wearing the Zonzamas jersey after stealing a ball in the middle of the field. So things looked good for the visitors who started the match with an unusual seven that included the presence of Myloslava Borodai on the left side.
But the nerves arrived. The first quarter of an hour of the match resulted in an exchange of goals with little fluidity on both sides in which the locals took a 2-goal lead and the goalkeepers shone. Valentina Menucci returned to the starting lineup of Zonzamas Plus Car Lanzarote and took advantage of it, signing a great performance and even scoring two goals into an empty net.
After that initial scare, Zonzamas began to find fluidity in the attack, although it did not always translate into goals. After the 20th minute, Gleynis Reyes scored from the wing and from that moment on the distance on the scoreboard was reduced until, with 5 minutes remaining in the first half, local coach Juan José González called a timeout. The break was better for Zonzamas, who after it managed to score 4 goals to go into halftime with one goal above.
The second half had a different color. Menucci continued to be inspired and frustrated the first four shots of Sporting La Rioja. As the minutes passed, the Zonzamas attack grew, but the locals continued to push and did not come off at any time. Almost in the middle of the second half, Brenda Roger ended a threat of passive play with a tight outside shot that put them two goals above.
The counterattacks helped to increase the gap thanks to a fast Luana Schallmey who executed a great match and increased her team's advantage to three goals, a situation that was maintained for several minutes forcing Sporting to ask for two timeouts with 5 minutes of difference.
After that second timeout, Lucía Chacón's goal came from the pivot to sign the maximum advantage accumulated by the visitors. But Sporting reacted and took out an individual defense to the winger Ingrid Roger that put the Zonzamas Plus Car Lanzarote attack in trouble and almost frustrated the visitor's victory.
After a heart-stopping ending, as is usual for Zonzamas, the two points travel by the minimum to San Bartolomé allowing them to climb one position in the league standings and paving the way to the promotion phase.
Technical sheet
Zonzamas Plus Car Lanzarote (24): Valentina Menucci (2), Marta Cuenca, María del Carmen Sánchez (1), Luana Schallmey (5), Brenda Roger (3), Ingrid Roger, Martina Layus (1), Gleinys Reyes (4), Jana Pinilla, Lucía Chacón (1), Ainhoa García, Ana Martín, Gabriela Romero (6), Myloslava Borodai (1).
Grafometal La Rioja (23): Aitane Larrayoz Martinez, Tatiana Lozano Visuña, Lorena Perez Alonso (1), Ana Luisa Lira Chaves, Damljana Bosnjak (2) Zahira Martin Limonge, Geandra Leôncio Rodrigues De Souza, Erica Isabel Correia Tavares (1), Paula Morales Caceres, Sandra Fernandez Couñago (2), Joana Garcês (1), Carla Rivas Garrido (4), Marina Gonzalez Marin (4), Karia Sidibe Sidibe, Silvia Ederra Urra (2), Andrea Maria Loscos Gracia (6)
Referees. Nuria Giro and Ona Comino. They excluded Tatiana Lozano, Lorena Pérez and Geandra Leoncio for Grafometal La Rioja for two minutes, and Lucía Chacón and Gabriela Romero for Zonzamas Plus Car Lanzarote.
Incidents. Match corresponding to matchday 13 in the Women's Gold Division of Honor played at the Palacio de los Deportes de La Rioja.