From the first minute of Saturday's EHF Champions League Women group B match between Storhamar Handball Elite and HC Lokomotiva Zagreb, there was no doubt about which team would end the evening as the winners.
Storhamar, who had an early eight-goal lead that kept going up, were better in all segments of the game. The Norwegian side celebrated their first-ever victory in the EHF Champions League with a huge 24-goal difference, 37:13, the second biggest ever home win in the competition.
GROUP B
Storhamar Handball Elite (NOR) vs HC Lokomotiva Zagreb (CRO) 37:13 (22:7)
- Lokomotiva made too many mistakes in attack, finishing early without scoring, and their shot efficiency at half-time stood at 37 per cent
- Stormahar took their first big lead in the 15th minute after three goals in a row by Tina Abdula and five saves from Sofie Ege Grønlund, who ended the night with 19 saves at a 59 per cent efficiency
- Storhamar went to the break with a 15 goal-lead, joining the club of teams with the biggest half-time lead
- Lokomotiva are still awaiting their first EHF Champions League win, while Storhamar celebrated their first-ever win in the competition
- Stela Posavec top-scored for Lokomotiva with four goals
Easy-looking win for Storhamar
What a night for Norwegian players. After a powerful performance by Esbjerg's Norwegian contingent, the same continued in Hamar. Handball looked super easy watching Storhamar play against Lokomotiva.
The Croatian players looked like they lost all power from the moment their opponents enjoyed a 4:0 run. The young Norwegian squad were good in all positions, but three players really stood out.
Tina Abdula on the right wing and Susanne Liberg Amundsen on the left wing were unstoppable. The duo scored a combined 14 times, while the player of the match was Sofie Ege Grønlund. The 23-year-old Norwegian goalkeeper stopped an amazing 19 shots and helped her team secure this historic win.
