Montenegro secured seventh place in the world, as the “lionesses” concluded their championship journey in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway with a stylish victory over the Czech Republic, finishing 28:24.

Bojana Popović’s squad kicked off the match with an impressive start, jumping to a lead of 7:2, followed by a brief 10-minute phase of diminished performance.

The Czech team capitalized on this to level the score at 7:7, but afterwards, the girls in green took control.

At halftime, they led by four goals (14:10), and at one point extended their advantage to a record six goals.

Itana Grbić emerged as the top scorer with seven goals, while Nina Bulatović netted five, and Tatjana Brnović contributed four. The player of the match accolade went to Marina Rajčić, who achieved 12 saves.

Montenegro clinched the match with an outstanding defensive performance, highlighted by the fact that Marketa Ježabkova, the tournament’s leading scorer, managed only five goals from 15 attempts.

With this victory over the Czech Republic, Montenegro has solidified their path to the Olympic Games. Rajčić and her teammates will participate in qualifying tournament 3 alongside Slovenia, Paraguay, and the loser of the fifth-place match between the Netherlands and Germany.

CZECH REPUBLIC – MONTENEGRO 24:28 (10:14)

Herning – “Jyske bank box”. Audience: 491. Referees: Lovin and Stanku (Romania). Penalty shots: Czech Republic 2 (1), Montenegro 5 (3). Exclusions: Montenegro 10 minutes.

Czech Republic: KUDLAČKOVA 1 (15 saves and seven goals), Novotna, Stžiškova 5, ŠUSTAČKOVA 5, Desortova 1, Stelnerova, Kuksova, FRANKOVA 3, Dresslerova, ZAHOVA 1, Kovažova, JEŽABKOVA 5 (1), MALA 3, Jestžibkova, HOLEVOVA.

Montenegro: RAJČIĆ (12 saves), Babović (seven saves), Marsenić 3, Pletikosić, Godeč 2 (2), MUGOŠA 2 (1), Nad. Ćorović, Popović, IVANOVIĆ 2, Malović 1, BRNOVIĆ 4, BULATOVIĆ 5, Klikovac 1, DESPOTOVIĆ 1, Pavićević, GRBIĆ 7.