On the first day of the South American Club Championship, the Brazilian teams dominated their opponents, securing victories in all three matches. The tournament features nine teams from five different countries, and began on Wednesday (March 15, 2023) at the Ginásio Mário Brum Negreiros in Araguari, Brazil.
Itambé Minas, the South American runner-up, started off strong with a win over UPCN of Argentina. The Brazilian team won in straight sets, with scores of 25-21, 25-16, and 25-20, securing three points and positioning themselves well for the classification.
Defending champions Sada Cruzeiro also secured a victory, defeating Bohemios from Uruguay without much difficulty in straight sets with scores of 25-9, 25-9, and 25-12. Welinton Oppenkoski of Sada Cruzeiro was the top scorer of the match, with 14 points, and the coach Filipe Ferraz used practically the entire team.
The home team, Araguari Vôlei, also celebrated a victory in their match against the Club Olympic de Bolívia. The Brazilian team won in straight sets with scores of 25-14, 25-14, and 25-13. The highlight of the game was the Bolivian Caceres, who scored 13 points, while Maicon Franca scored 10 for the hosts.
The tournament will continue until Sunday, with teams battling it out for a chance to lift the South American Club Championship trophy. With three Brazilian teams in the mix, the competition promises to be fierce, and fans can expect more thrilling matches in the days to come.
South American Club Championship
Pool A
Sada Cruzeiro (BRA) vs Bohemios (URU) 3-0 (25-9, 25-9, 25-12)
Pool B
Araguari Vôlei (BRA) vs Club Olympic de Bolívia (BOL) 3-0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-13)
Pool C
Itambé Minas (BRA) vs UPCN (ARG) 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-20)