Games Thursday:
(Philsports Arena)
4 p.m. — Capital1 vs Akari
6 p.m. — Cignal vs Chery Tiggo
Nxled mounted a couple of stirring comebacks to repel Farm Fresh and hack out a 24-26, 25-20, 25-23, 20-25, 15-11 win in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference Tuesday night at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
Camille Victoria and Lycha Ebon foiled Kate Santiago’s attack to end the Foxies’ bid for a last-ditch fightback as the Chameleons prevailed in a decider marked by fierce exchanges but marred by several miscues.
But Nxled survived its struggles, putting up a strong finishing kick the way it did in the third set to overcome a 20-22 deficit and won by two behind a late four-point binge capped by an Ebon ace.
Farm Fresh saved a set point on a Trisha Tubu blast but Victoria scored on a quick play as the Chameleons snatched the pivotal set to go 2-1 up in the match.
The Foxies did stage their own comeback in the fourth to force the decider where Farm Fresh appeared to have gained the edge while pouncing on their opponents’ errors, 8-5.
But the Chameleons came out of the technical timeout an organized lot, racking up three straight points, including a block off Chinnie Arroyo.
They wrested the lead as the Foxies yielded a point on a lapse in communication, the first of their four errors in the stretch.
Nxled padded its lead to 10-8 on a Farm Fresh net violation, and Chiara Permentialla scored a crucial point off an out-of-system play following a Tubu attack and the Chameleons moved to match point as Santiago and Tubu made flawed assaults in their bids to launch a counter.
Nxled thus picked up its second straight win following its romp over Strong Group last Thursday but it hardly boosted its ranking to 3-5 for solo eighth.
Farm Fresh, on the other hand, slipped to 2-7.
Ivy Lacsina paced Nxled with 21 points, including 18 on attacks, while Ebon sizzled with 17 points and Victoria and Permentilla contributed 16 markers apiece that helped key the Chameleons’ two-hour and 26-minute victory.
“It’s really nice to see that we won it five because it was our first time (going through such distance),” Nxled Japanese coach Taka Minowa said.
