Thrillers in Belgium, Bulgaria and Italy as first teams clinch next round

• Jomi PDO Salerno and HC DAC Dunajská Streda met for their first leg match in Italy and delivered a thriller; neither side could pull away during the first 23 minutes of the match, until the hosts went on a 4:1 run to lead 14:10 at half-time; the visitors climbed back into the tie, even taking the lead with a 3:0 run inside the last five minutes (24:25); Salerno scored one last goal to take a draw into the second leg next weekend

• two teams from the Faroe Islands have clinched their tickets for the next round; H71 beat HB Dudelange in a double-header at home 81:62 on aggregate, scoring 40+ goals in both matches (41:38 & 40:24), with Maria Hálsdóttir Weyhe contributing 25 goals; Neistin also made it to round 3, beating KHF Samadrexha in Kosovo by six goals on aggregate (28:23 & 25:24); 18-year-old Ró Reginsdóttir scored 19 goals for the side from Tórshavn

• CASCADA – HC Garliava SC and ZORK Bor put on dominant performances in their double-headers; Garliava beat Mavrommatis 82:31 on aggregate and also scored 40+ goals in both matches (40:20 & 42:11); Bor beat ZRK Krivaja 77:53, as Aleksandra Vasic was top-scorer across both contests, netting 15 times

• HC Byala beat Holon HC on penalties to qualify for round 3; the Bulgarian side lost the first leg 34:32, but levelled the score after 120 minutes with a 31:29 victory in the second leg; Holon secured the penalty shoot-out with a 3:0 run in the last three minutes of the tie; in the shoot-out, Byala fought back after missing the second shot, to win 4:3 and in total 67:66 on aggregate

• LK Zug Handball played their double-header in Türkiye against Odunpazari SK and advance by an aggregate score of 59:52; top-scorer across both matches was Odunpazari’s Eda Nur Çetin with 24 goals, scoring 16 in the second leg

• SSV Brixen Südtirol welcomed WHC Vardar for a double-header in Italy; Brixen decided the first leg with a 4:0 run between minutes 49 and 53, pulling five goals away and winning 32:29; in the second leg, a 5:0 run between minutes 29 and 32 opened up the match for the hosts, who never looked back, claiming the reverse fixture by eleven goals (36:25)

LATE RALLY SECURES HOME WIN

HB Sint Truiden rally in the last quarter of their first leg against Athinaikos HC to travel to Greece with a one-goal advantage. The visitors had the better start, scoring not only the first couple of goals but also taking a four-goal lead after 15 minutes (4:8). The Belgian hosts came back within one goal but committed too many technical faults to level the score. From minutes 31 to 45, Athinaikos maintained a one- to two-goal lead. However, the hosts turned the match around, committing fewer turnovers and capitalizing on an eight-minute scoring drought for the Greeks (minutes 52 to 60). In the end, Sint Truiden secure a 25:24 home victory, heading to Greece next Sunday with the smallest advantage possible.