UPCN San Juan Voley finally did it. After two consecutive years of reaching the final and losing to Sesi-SP and Sada Cruzeiro, the time came for Fabian Armoa’s team. Vivo/Minas was the rival in the final match, and the 3-0 (30-28, 25-17, 30-28) result gave the team of Cuyo their first international title , the Southamerican Club Championship. RJX, prior candidate, ended third after beating Buenos Aires Unidos in bronze medal match.
Nobody bet on UPCN, but them. They trusted they could do it, even knowing that there were not one but two Brazilian teams on their way. Vivo/Minas, the host team, and RJX, that couldn’t count with Murilo Endres (elbow surgery) but still had Dante, Thiago, Lukas, Bruninho, Mario Jr and Theo among its players.
The way to the title wasn’t easy. First day of competition, in the round robin, Vivo/Minas defeated UPCN 3-1 with an impressive service performance (14 aces) and very ordered offensive, led by Marcelo Elgarten and capitalized by Rejlek and Lucarelli. After that, the victory in straight sets against Peruvian Peerless gave the argentine team its passage to semifinals.
There, BAU waited fiercely, after defeating RJX for 3-1 in round robin and finishing first in its zone. In the Argentinean A1 League Final re-edition, UPCN won again, 3-1 and reached the final for third year in a row. In the other draw, Minas took advantage of a poor RJX and eliminated the Brazilian Superliga champion.
With the title in play, Demian Gonzalez led its partners with great volleyball understanding, and found in Bogdan Olteanu (91% and 22 points), Pablo Bengolea (14 points) and Evandro Guerra (13 points) the pillars to take the victory home. Rodrigo Quiroga’s will to win and excellent receiving performance (82%) weren’t enough and Horacio Dileo´s team had to conform with silver medal.
With this title, UPCN assured its passage to Club World Championship, to be also disputed in Brazil, in October.
RESULTS
Day 1 – (8/5)
BAU – Vikingos Miranda (VEN) 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-15, 25-20)
RJX (BRA) – Carmelo Rowing (URU) 3-0 (25-7, 25-21, 25-7)
Vivo/Minas (BRA) – Peerless (PER) 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-11)
Day 2 (9/5)
Carmelo Rowing (URU) – Buenos Aires Unidos 0-3 (12-25, 15-25, 14-25)
RJX (BRA) – Vikingos Miranda (VEN) 3-0 (25-17, 27-25, 25-16)
Vivo/Minas (BRA) – UPCN San Juan 3-1 (25-13, 21-25, 25-14, 25-23)
Day 3 (10/5)
Vikingos (VEN) – Carmelo Rowing (URU) 3-0 (25-23, 25-14, 25-14)
Peerless (PER) – UPCN San Juan 0-3 (17-25, 22-25, 12-25)
RJX (BRA) – Buenos Aires Unidos 1-3 (25-20, 25-23, 25-19, 25-20)
Day 4 (11/5)
Peerless (PER) – Vikingos Miranda (VEN) 0-3 (25-27, 22-25, 15-25)
Vivo/Minas (BRA) – RJX (BRA) 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-20)
UPCN San Juan – Buenos Aires Unidos 3-1 (25-23, 26-24, 21-25, 25-20)
Day 5 (12/5)
RJX (BRA) – Buenos Aires Unidos 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-18)
UPCN San Juan – Vivo/Minas (BRA) 3-0 (30-28, 25-17, 30-28)
Player distinctions
Best digger: Nicolás Uriarte (ARG) – Buenos Aires Unidos
Best receiver: Rodrigo Quiroga (ARG) – Vivo/Minas
Best libero: Sebastián Garrocq (ARG) – UPCN
Best setter: Demián González (ARG) – UPCN
Best server: Lucarelli (BRA) – Vivo/Minas
Best blocker: José Junior (BRA) – UPCN
Best spiker: Lucas Saatkamp (BRA) – RJX
MVP: Demián González (ARG) – UPCN