News, Articles, Scores, Transfers & More | Volleyball World

Thaisa

It wasn’t decided until the final set of the last match of the best-of-three series, but Itambe Minas won the Brazilian Women’s Superliga for the second time in a row and the fourth in club history on Monday.

Playing at the Brazilian Federation training facility in Saquarema, Rio de Janeiro, Minas had an inconsistent evening, but came up big in the most important moments to defeat in-state rivals Dentil Praia Clube 3-2 (25-17, 13-25, 12-25, 25-18, 15-11) and turn the series around after losing the opening match last Thursday.

The Belo Horizonte-based club had previously won national titles in 1992-1993 (when the tournament was called the National League), 2001-2002 and 2018-2019. The title capped off a strong season for Minas, who won 27 of their 29 Superliga matches and also lifted trophies in the Brazilian Cup and the Mineiro Championship.

"It was an amazing season," Minas head coach Nicola Negro said. "We headed into the semifinals with 23 consecutive wins, but unfortunately let our level drop a little bit. Praia were a fantastic opponent and demanded a lot from us. I'm proud and happy about this title because I feel the team really deserved it."

Easy and Martinez

The match's top scorers Easy (11) and Martinez (in yellow) battle at the net