At 02:00 hours on 15 April the 20th Division received from TSKM the order to move southwards and deploy in the area west of the Aliakmon River and between Tsotyli and Neapoli.

The division remained on the defensive, and successfully held back elements of the LSSAH attacking from Florina, in the battle of Pisoderi Pass.

The division had attacked with two battalions on 7 April north of Pogradec, taking some Italian positions and many prisoners, but also suffering substantial casualties (763 killed and wounded).

[2] The information arriving from Yugoslavia regarding the situation there, convinced the Greek command to call off the attacks for 8 April, and the division reverted to the defensive.

[3] On the same day elements of the division entered Yugoslav territory and carried out demolitions on the road leading to Pogradec to protect its flank.

Battalion I/23 had marched some 60 kilometres (37 mi) in 15 hours and had reached Bilisht at 15:30 where it took the order to move to Argos Orestiko and be put under command of 21st Infantry Brigade.

[12] By the morning of 15 April the detachment was further reinforced with an additional 3 field and 4 heavy artillery batteries, while the 2nd Positional Machinegun battalion was sent to replace the 13th Reconnaissance Group which was to cover the front further south.

[29] At 13:30, the Germans repeated their infantry attack with strong support by tanks and artillery and by 14:00 succeeded in capturing the village Ampelokipoi on the Greek right wing.

The Greek cavalry squadron defending the location suffered heavily, retreated and part of it was captured, after its commander captain Kleitos Hatziliadis was killed in action.

[32] The Greek command which had been worried from the beginning about its weak right flank, started to become desperate, and began using whoever was available, such as artillery gunners, muleteers and engineers, to plug the gap.

[33] The situation became more dire when at 15:00 the remaining squadron of the 13 Reconnaissance Group defending hill 681 abandoned it, and the command of 13th division failed to rally it.

Thus after that point there were almost no Greek forces south of the village Ampelokipoi and the appearance of German armored vehicles moving in the plains towards Argos Orestiko was considered a matter of time.

The commander of the Greek 13th division personally rode a motorcycle and after locating the descending column of the III/22, which was severely weakened in numbers after very long continuous marching, ordered it to move immediately to the hill 681 before the Germans.

[35] Meyer notes that “one of their batteries continued to fire and was shot to pieces”[36] At 19:00, the German armour encircled and captured Argos Orestiko.

As II/LSSAH, which in the meantime had crossed over Kleisoura pass and joined the action, reached the area south-west of Lake Kastoria, the III/LSSAH was ordered to occupy Argos Orestiko at 23:00.