Israel's Youth Handball Team Beats Austria 31-22, Secures Fourth Straight Win at European Championship

Israel's youth handball team continued its impressive run at the European Championship on Friday, securing a 31-22 victory over Austria. This marked their fourth consecutive win in the tournament, coached by Dor Russo and Asaf Siton. The team has already qualified for the Under-19 World Championship next summer and will face North Macedonia on Sunday for ninth place in Europe.

The match saw Israel take an early lead, quickly going up 5-0 with goalkeeper Ruben Ouanouno performing strongly. Austria scored their first goal after seven minutes, but Israel extended their lead to 16-10 by halftime, with standout performances from Jonathan Pelech, who is leading the tournament in goals, and Rom Tobis, who scored five goals before the break.

In the second half, Israel struggled to score for over seven minutes, allowing Austria to narrow the gap to 16-14. Coach Russo called a timeout that proved decisive, after which Tobis earned a penalty and Pelech scored, restoring control. Additional key contributions came from Itay Ornstein, who scored important goals despite limited playtime earlier in the tournament, and Ouanouno, who maintained excellent form. The final score reflected Israel's dominance and the team heads into the weekend with confidence.

Top scorers for Israel were Jonathan Pelech with 15 goals, Rom Tobis with 6, Itay Ornstein with 4, Nevo Masika with 3, Tomer Michalis with 2, and Dor Zayden with 1. Sunday's match against North Macedonia will conclude a remarkable summer for Israeli handball, with both youth teams qualifying for the World Championship and the youth team ranking among Europe's top ten.