The Minas Gerais rivals meet on Friday evening in the fourth leg of the second round of the regular season
Published 03:00, 29 Jan 2026
Minas have defeated Praia twice in the 2025-2026 season (Photo: Hedgard Moraes/Minas Tênis Clube)
The always intense Derby reuniting in-state rivals Gerdau Minas and Dentil Praia Clube will be the highlight of the fourth leg of the second round of the 2025-2026 Brazilian Women's Superliga regular season.
Fresh from qualifying for the Brazilian Cup semifinals last weekend, the teams will meet on Friday at 21:00 local time (00:00 UTC, Saturday) at Minas' Arena UniBH in Belo Horizonte.
Ranked second and third in the standings, the teams will not switch positions this week, as Minas have a five-point gap (35 to 30) to Praia, but a victory of the visiting side could make the race for second place more interesting as the regular season nears its conclusion.
Minas enter Friday's encounter coming off three straight victories, all earned after their surprising upset of Batavo Mackenzie in the first match of the year. Pushing to catch league leaders SESC RJ Flamengo, who have 40 points, they need to get the job done at home to try to close the gap between them.
In her first season with the Brazilian giants, Canadian outside hitter Hilary Johnson has been the team's offensive leader in 2025-2026, having accumulated 205 points in 14 Superliga matches. Polish setter Julia Nowicka also trusts her middles a lot, with Brazilian national team member Júlia Kudiess registering 175 points and Olympic champion Thaisa Menezes notching 154.
Before overcoming SESI Vôlei Bauru in the Brazilian Cup quarterfinals, Praia lost to Flamengo in the Superliga, ending their eight-match winning streak in the tournament. The team from Uberlândia showed significant improvement after an inconsistent start to their season and is now fighting for the top spots in the standings ahead of the start of the playoffs.
American opposite Morgahn Fingall is Praia's most productive player so far in the season with 169 points, followed by her compatriot and outside hitter Payton Caffrey, who found her best form after missing the first matches of their campaign and already has 161. Olympic champion middle blocker and team captain Adenízia Ferreira is another viable scoring option for setter Macris Carneiro, accumulating 156 points.
Minas have won the two duels against Praia held so far in the 2025-2026 season, having triumphed at both the first round of the Superliga and the Minas Gerais State Championship Final.
The fourth leg of the second round of the regular season begins on Thursday, with a duel reuniting two teams that fight against relegation. Currently the first team above the cutoff line, appearing in 10th place with 12 points, Paulistano Barueri will face 12th-placed Renasce Sorocaba, who have only four, at 18:30 local time (21:30 UTC).
Friday's schedule will feature two more matches, with leaders Flamengo facing 11th-placed Tijuca Tênis Clube at 18:30 (21:30 UTC) and sixth-placed Fluminense meeting fifth-placed SESI at 20:00 (23:00 UTC).
Brazilian Women’s Superliga – Match Schedule & Results
The schedule will be completed on Saturday, with ninth-placed Brasília Vôlei facing seventh-placed Sancor Maringá Vôlei at 19:00 (22:00 UTC) and eighth-placed Mackenzie hosting fourth-placed and defending champions Osasco São Cristovão Saúde at 21:30 (00:30 UTC, Sunday).
Quick links:
Brazilian Women's Superliga
VBTV
Volleyball World Facebook
Volleyball World X
Volleyball World Instagram
Volleyball World YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter
