Praia claim fourth consecutive Supercup title

Dentil Praia Clube secured their second title against in-state rivals Itambe Minas in just over 48 hours as the team followed up on a Saturday triumph in the Mineiro Championship with a victory in the 2021 Brazilian Supercup on Monday.

The straight-set (25-16, 25-18, 25-20) win over Minas in Brusque granted Praia their fourth-consecutive victory in the tournament. The Uberlandia-based club are now the only club in the event's history to have taken the title four times.

Led by Brazilian national team assistant coach Paulo Coco, Praia retained most of their core players this season, most notably Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Ana Carolina ‘Carol’ da Silva and Dominican sisters Brayelin and Jineiry Martinez. The team lost Olympic champion Fernanda Garay, who has put her career on pause, but have Dutch star outside hitter Anne Buijs and Beijing 2008 Olympic champion Walewska Oliveira on their roster.

“I’m really happy to have won another tournament with Praia,” Carol, who joined the club in 2018, said. “The season has just started, but we’ve worked a lot to be in good form at this moment. We knew it would be a difficult match because Minas have a strong roster and we know each other really well, but we prepared as well as we could to play a good match. I’m sure both teams will improve during the season.”

Buijs led all scorers in the Supercup with 16 points while the Martinez sisters registered 12 each.

Minas have Tokyo Olympic silver medallists Carol Gattaz and Macris Carneiro on their roster, as well as two-time Olympic champion middle blocker Thaisa Menezes. The biggest change in the team’s lineup from last season was the departure of American outside hitter Megan Easy, who was replaced by Turkish Neriman Ozsoy.

Praia and Minas could meet for a third title as soon as next Monday, as both teams are set to compete at the 2021 South American Women’s Club Championship, in Brasilia. The tournament will be played from October 21-25 and will also feature Brazil’s Brasilia Volei, Uruguay’s Olimpia and Bolivia’s San Martin. The two top finishers will qualify for the 2021 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship, which will be played in Ankara, Turkey, from December 15-19.