Redemption complete as Jaja Santiago (Sachi Minowa) and the Osaka Marvelous scored a Finals sweep of the ertshwhile two-time defending champion NEC Red Rockets in the Japan SV.League.
Sachi Minowa (Jaja Santiago) capped off her final season in the Japan SV.League as a champion.
This is after the Osaka Marvelous completed a Finals sweep of the NEC Red Rockets Kawasaki behind a 25-22, 25-21, 25-16 victory in Game 2 on Saturday, May 3.
Belgian import Lise Van Hecke paced Osaka anew with a team-high 13 points, while team captain Mizuki Tanaka logged 12 more en route to being hailed as the Finals MVP.
Minowa, meanwhile, submitted 10 markers built on seven attacks and three blocks. The 29-year-old hitter tallied 12 points in their Game 1 triumph that also ended in a straight-set fashion.
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On the other hand, Yoshino Sato took the scoring cudgels for NEC with 15 points.
Osaka gained 2-0 set lead before sparking a 5-0 run to take a 17-12 lead midway through the third set. The Marvelous then pulled away en route to sealing the win off a Van Hecke crosscourt kill.
It completed a season-long redemption arc for Osaka, who lost last year to NEC in the championship round after a flawless 23-0 campaign.
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Osaka ended the regular season with a league-best 37-7 win-loss record before eliminating the Saga Hisamitsu Springs in the quarterfinals, along with Jia De Guzman and her Denso Airybees in the semis.