Perpetual-Kinto Tyres crushed Chef on a Diet-FEU with a commanding performance, fashioning out a 25-18, 25-17, 25-21 victory as the Altas barged into the semifinal round of the Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference ahead of everybody else Sunday at the Paco Arena in Manila.
The Altas kept the momentum of their intense five-set escape over the DLSU-Dasmariñas side at the close of pool eliminations play last Wednesday, controlling the match from the start while silencing the Tamaraws with a dominant offensive and capitalizing on their opponents’ mishits and miscues.
With Louie Ramirez on the firing end, Perpetual continued its assault in the second frame, building leads of 9-4 and 11-6 before pulling away at 17-9.
Despite the Tamaraws’ attempt to regroup and reload, the Altas had responses for every FEU charge, claiming the victory in a swift one-hour and 33-minute match.
Perpetual thus nailed the first slot in the Final Four, a round-robin phase that will feature Japanese guest team Maruichi Hyogo.
Jefferson Marapoc and Micheal Medalla backed Ramirez with 12 and 10 points, respectively, as the Altas finished with 43 attack points against the Tamaraws’ 34. They also scored three aces.
Perpetual likewise earned 19 points from FEU’s unforced errors while yielding 13 points of its own.
