Borussia Dortmund's women's handball team continues to ride a wave of success: a 33-16 (17-11) win over tenth-placed Sachsen Zwickau saw them emphatically consolidate second place in the league table. 821 enthusiastic fans celebrated the win and Dana Bleckmann's comeback long after the final whistle.

The scenario: Following victories over Thüringer HC and Blomberg-Lippe, BVB moved into second place behind the reigning champions from Bietigheim with five games left to play. The Black & Yellows had gone on a run of seven successive wins. Borussia won the reverse fixture against the Saxons 31-25.

Personnel matters: With the exception of Lena Degenhardt, who continued to miss the game against Zwickau due to a cruciate ligament rupture, all players were available for coach Henk Groener. Dana Bleckmann made her first appearance on Saturday evening, eight months after tearing her cruciate ligament. Emma Olsson was also an option again after recovering from the ankle injury she suffered in Neckarsulm.

The game: Zwickau's head coach Norman Rentsch had already conceded in advance that the team from Saxony, who were tenth in the table, were the underdogs. BVB led 8-5 after ten minutes thanks to their usual fast-paced style of play. In the tenth minute, the Sporthalle Wellinghofen erupted in applause when head coach Henk Groener brought on Dana Bleckmann. The fans were delighted to see her make her comeback, and it didn't take long for her to score a goal to make it 10-7 (15).

Despite BVB taking a quick lead, Zwickau proved to be an unpleasant opponent. The Black & Yellow defence stood firm from the very first minute and goalkeeper Tess Lieder was on hand to make good saves on several occasions. BVB then stepped up the pace in attack after a timeout. Five minutes before the break, Borussia increased their lead to 15-8. Zwickau's record goalscorer Ema Hrvatin was also kept in check with just one goal up to this point. The score was 17-11 at the break. Alicia Stolle (five goals) and Zoë Sprengers (four goals) were the standout BVB players in the first half.

BVB then put on a show in the second half: Harma van Kreij and Alicia Stolle made it 19-11 shortly after the break before Lisa Antl extended the lead to 20-11. The game was now decided, especially as Zwickau were only able to score their twelfth goal six minutes after the break thanks to a seven-metre penalty from Hrvatin.

The dominance became clear once again in the final 20 minutes: BVB were always one step ahead, overrunning Zwickau with their breakneck pace. Goalkeeper Sarah Wachter only conceded five goals in the entire second half. Dana Bleckmann's presence at the back had a positive effect. The score was 24-13 in the 40th minute and 28-13 after a further ten minutes, with Emma Olsson scoring the final goal to make it 33-16.

Henk Groener: "Our defence worked well right from the start, as did our two goalkeepers. We only conceded five goals in the second half. The whole team stepped on the gas."

Dana Bleckmann: "I was extremely happy about my comeback. Our defence clamped down on them, which allowed us to play forward at speed and score goals."

Outlook: Henk Groener's team travels to SV Union Halle-Neustadt next Saturday (19:00 CEST). A week later, the headline game of the round will be away to third-placed HSG Bensheim/Auerbach (18:00 CEST).

Borussia Dortmund:  Lieder, Wachter; Hausherr (2), Sprengers (4),  Antl (3), Kusian (1), van Kreij (2), Stolle (6), Ossenkopp (2), Sasaki (4), Olsson (5), Rønning (1), Bleckmann (1), Campos Costa (2)