Panathinaikos Beat AEK 3-1 in Pink to Honor Captain Penny Rogka

By Taki Panos

Some season openers are about the points. This one was about a jersey. Panathinaikos beat AEK 3-1 on Saturday afternoon in the first round of the women's Volley League, winning by set scores of 25-16, 20-25, 26-24 and 25-18 at the Mets indoor hall in Athens, the club reported. The players took the floor in green kits with pink details, a tribute to their captain Penny Rogka, who has come through her own fight with cancer, as Gazzetta reported. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and the message landed well beyond the court.

If you are new to this rivalry, Panathinaikos is the most successful women's volleyball club in Greece in terms of league titles, according to Wikipedia, and the club's other departments have kept us busy this month, from the women's basketball EuroCup win over ALBA Berlin to the water polo derby loss to Apollon Smyrnis. Rogka, listed on the club's 2026-27 roster as a libero, per GreekVolley, is not just the captain. For a lot of people in Greek volleyball, she has become a symbol of strength.

The jersey itself told the story. According to Gazzetta, the specially designed kit carried the message "FAITH. POWER. LIFE.", Penny's name, and the date she learned she had won the biggest battle of her life. Before the first serve, the hall played a moving video for the captain, Panathinaikos wrote. iefimerida reported that she won that battle months ago and described her as a role model for everyone, no matter which team they support.

The club explained the gesture on social media. "On the occasion of October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we honor a story of strength, a journey that goes beyond the four lines of a court," the post said, as quoted by SPORT24 (translated from Greek). It went on: "The green of the team, of faith, of consistency. The pink of awareness, of hope, of female strength." The club called the initiative a moment of unity, a thank you to its captain and a message to every woman fighting her own battle, per the same report.

Now to the volleyball, because it was a proper fight. Panathinaikos raced away in the first set, going up 10-6 and holding a lead of five to seven points the rest of the way before closing it 25-16, the club's match report said. Gazzetta described an opener with the energy of a finals series, with shouting, clapping and plenty of tension filling the hall (translated from Greek). AEK did not blink. The second set went point for point until the visitors pulled away late to win it 25-20 and level the match at 1-1.

The third set was the hinge. AEK led 12-15 after an ace, but Panathinaikos tied it at 15-15 on an Eline Timmerman block and went ahead on an Aristea Tontai ace, per the club. AEK pushed back in front at 20-21, and the home side still found a way to take it 26-24. Gazzetta singled out Tontai's arrival off the bench in place of Markela Papageorgiou as a turning point, crediting the middle blocker with breaking AEK's rhythm. Small changes, big swings.

The fourth set belonged to the hosts. Panathinaikos jumped to a 4-1 lead, and when AEK clawed back, American Micaya White took over with a string of strong individual plays to make it 14-9, Gazzetta wrote. Monika Lampkowska added a sharp attack for 16-11, AEK cut it to 16-15, and a green run to 19-15 settled things on the way to 25-18, according to the club. White finished as the joint top scorer with 21 points, 20 of them on attacks, per Gazzetta.

Behind her, Gabriela Orvosova scored 13, Timmerman 12, Lampkowska 7, while Lamprini Konstantinidou and Tontai had 5 each, the box score showed. Rogka was on the Panathinaikos team sheet as well, per Gazzetta. For AEK, coached by Kostas Tambouratzis, Angela Leyva scored 16 and Errika Gravari 14, while their leading outside hitter matched White with 21, the same box score showed. Gazzetta's verdict was that AEK often had the better rhythm, but experience decided the key moments.

Head coach Alessandro Chiappini kept his feet on the ground afterward. "We knew it would be a difficult game. We did not perform well at the block," he said, as quoted by the club (translated from Greek). "I am happy for the win and the character we showed, even though we lost the second set. It is the start of the season and we expect to get even better in the future." A coach complaining about his block after a derby win is a coach who wants more. Fair enough.

What makes this story bigger than one result is that the respect has crossed team colors before. In November 2025, before a Panathinaikos game at AEK, the AEK supporters presented Rogka with a bouquet of flowers to honor her fight against cancer and her return to the court, Ta Nea reported. Panathinaikos won that night 3-2. "I want to thank all the AEK fans for honoring me. I cannot describe my feelings in words," she told Enwsi the next day (translated from Greek), adding that all she felt was respect and appreciation.

My take: Greek sport gets plenty of headlines for the wrong reasons, from crowd trouble to angry statements, so moments like this deserve the same volume. A captain who returned to the court after cancer, teammates wearing her story on their chests, and a rival fan base that already showed her class a year ago. Panathinaikos mourned a club giant this week, and this is the kind of tradition worth building. And honestly, a 3-1 win over AEK on opening day does not hurt either.

The Volley League season is long, and AEK will have their chances to answer, but the first word went to the greens. We will keep following both teams, along with the rest of Greek volleyball and the Greek athletes making news around the world, so keep an eye on our Greek Sports section. And if you or someone you love has been putting off a check-up this October, take this as your sign. Faith, power, life.

Sources: Panathinaikos A.O., Gazzetta, Gazzetta Women, SPORT24, iefimerida, Ta Nea, Enwsi, GreekVolley, Wikipedia.

Image: Panathinaikos FC crest, via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).