Pablo powers Philips to Superliga victory
Games tomorrow (Cuneta Astrodome) 1:30 p.m. – Cignal vs Shopinas 4:15 p.m. – Mane ‘N Tail vs Foton 6:15 p.m. – Philips Gold vs Petron
Philips Gold came up with a defensive gem down the stretch and shocked Foton, 25-18, 24-26, 25-21, 15-25, 15-13, yesterday in the 2015 Philippine Superliga women’s volleyball tournament All-Filipino Conference at the Cuneta Astrodome.
Rookie Myla Pablo finally unleashed her true potential, delivering crucial hits in the fifth set to spearhead the Lady Slammers to a morale- boosting victory.
Pablo, one of the star spikers of National University, unloaded all of her 21 points on kills while Michelle Gumabao, Rossan Fajardo and Desiree Dadang chipped in 16, 14 and 12 points, respectively, as Philips Gold captured its second win in five games while snapping the two-game winning streak of the Tornadoes.
“I made some adjustments with our setter,” said Philips Gold coach Francis Vicente, who deployed Sarah Espelita to relieve Filipino-American setter Iris Tolenada in the critical juncture of the deciding set.
“Myla is good playing with slower sets when she was still in college. So I decided to adjust our game to suit her power and athletic ability. I was happy that she killed most of the slow sets given to her,” he added.
But Pablo’s attacking prowess wasn’t the only thing that keyed the Lady Slammers’ overwhelming win. Defense also played a major role. With Foton claiming a slim 13-12 edge in the fifth set off an attack error by Pablo, Gumabao uncorked a booming smash from the opposite side that squared the count at 13.
Then, Patty Orendain failed on her attack while Hazel Mea contained Pam Lastimosa with a single block to seal the victory.
“It was a morale-boosting win for us entering the second round,” Vicente said. “Yung blocking ang nagdala sa
amin sa fifth set. Our defense was great, that’s why Foton found it hard to counterattack.”
It was such a sorry loss for Foton, which lost Dzi Gervacio to a left knee injury in the middle part of the second set. She was immediately brought to Makati Medical Center in what looked like a case of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear.
Nicole Tiamzon, the 19-year old spiker from University of the Philippines, nailed 20 kills to finish with 21 points while delivering tons of intangibles in the early part of the fifth set. She, however, couldn’t get it done as the smothering net defense of Philips Gold became effective.
Orendain and Lastimosa contributed 10 points apiece for the Tornadoes, who remain at second spot despite absorbing their second loss in five games.
Meanwhile, the league will have a new ambassador in Cha Cruz of Shopinas.
PSL president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said Cruz is such a perfect choice due to her charming personality and wholesome image both inside and outside the court.
“We are so glad that Cha Cruz accepted the offer. Her role is to promote the ideals and objectives of the league,” said Suzara, who will formally recognize Cruz after their game tomorrow.