Italian favoritism overcame the Brazilian home advantage in the semifinals of the Women’s Volleyball Club World Championship. This Saturday (13), Osasco/São Cristóvão Saúde and Dentil Praia Clube did not resist the strength of Conegliano and Scandicci, respectively, and will have to settle for the dispute for third place in the competition, which takes place at the Pacaembu gymnasium, in São Paulo.
The duel between Osasco and Praia will be this Sunday (14), at 1 pm (Brasília time). Later, at 4:30 pm, Conegliano and Scandicci will face each other for the world title, in a rematch of the final of the last European Champions League.
Related news:
- Carol Soberg and Rebecca win bronze medals at the Beach Volleyball World Championships.
- Sesi-SP wins the Brazilian Women’s Sitting Volleyball Championship.
Current Superliga Feminina champion and tournament host, Osasco faced the main title contender. Packed with international stars, including outside hitter Gabi Guimarães, captain of the Brazilian national team, Conegliano fell behind but showed strength in the following sets to win 3 sets to 1, with scores of 21/25, 25/23, 25/16 and 25/16.
Gabi, by the way, shone at Pacaembu. With 18 points, she was the standout player in the Italian club’s qualification, which is seeking its fourth world title, which would tie it with the Turkish VakıfBank as the tournament’s most successful team. In Osasco, the top scorers were American outside hitter Caitie Baird and Argentinian opposite hitter Bianca Cugno, with 17 points each.
Earlier, Scandicci defeated Praia 3-0 and qualified for the final without losing a single set so far. The set scores were 25/23, 26/24, and 25/19. In the final, the team will have a chance for revenge against Conegliano, from whom they lost in the last European final.
Russian Ekaterina Antropova led the Italian team to victory with 20 points. Opposite hitter Morgahn Fingall, an American who joined Praia this season, was the standout player for the Uberlândia (MG) team, which was eliminated in the World Championship semifinals for the third consecutive edition.
