Three teams looked headed to the next phase just a week into the compact Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference elimination round.
Defending champion Creamline is sharp as ever, its sister club Choco Mucho behind the veteran presence of Sisi Rondina has turned into a legitimate title contender while F2 Logistics continues to impress with its mix of seasoned and veteran players.
All three teams have collected back-to-back wins in their respective pools as the mid-season tournament wrapped its opening week.
The league takes a break to give way to the country’s hosting of the Men’s Volleyball Nations League Week 3 and will resume hostilities on 11 July with a quadruple-bill playdate.
The Cool Smashers posted a pair of straight sets romps in Pool A over Chery Tiggo and newcomer Gerflor to kick-start their title-retention drive.
Shutting down the debuting Farm Fresh and trouncing Cignal in four, the Cargo Movers, with a souped-up roster, underscored their readiness to go all the way to the championship after placing third in the recent All-Filipino Conference.
With former middle Ivy Lacsina appearing to thrive as an open spiker and their three rookies showing great potential, observers fear F2 Logistics coach Regine Diego might be soon fretting over not where to find talents but who to go to at crunch time.
“I’m happy we have a lot of options now but I have to make sure that they gel in together,” Diego said of her squad’s deep bench which includes Kim Kianna Dy, Aby Maraño, Myla Pablo, Major Baron, Ara Galang, Elaine Kasilag, Shola Alvarez, Elaine Kasilag, playmaker Kim Fajardo and liberos Dawn Macandili.
Add spikers Jolina dela Cruz and Jovelyn Fernandez and setter Marionne Alba, the Cargo Movers do expect to deliver the championship with Diego confident her wards will get better, stronger after the break.
Choco Mucho also looks forward to ending a four-year quest for a PVL championship on a team that looked every inch a title contender with the entry of Rondina.
And if her back-to-back Player of the Game honors in her first two games would be any indication, then the Flying Titans could indeed be ready to soar from start to finish in this conference with the former UST hitter, who has shifted her focus to indoor volley after playing beach the past four years, serving as the last piece to the championship jigsaw.
“We’re thankful for her (Rondina) performance, she reciprocates the trust we’re giving her,” Choco Mucho coach Dante Alinsunurin said.
Still, for many, Creamline, with its tested, battle-scarred crew, remains the team to beat.
Sure, PLDT, Chery Tiggo, Akari and even Gerflor remain the thick of things in Group A and Petro Gazz, Cignal, Foton and Farm Fresh still have a chance in Group B with still four busy playdates left in the cutthroat qualifiers.
But from the looks of things – and barring any major issues or injuries – Creamline, F2 Logistics and Choco Mucho could be more dominating at resumption and on their way to securing the first three berths in post-elims play.
