Games today:
(Philsporst Arena)
4 p.m. — Chery Tiggo vs Army
6:30 p.m. — Akari vs F2 Logistics
Chery Tiggo and F2 Logistics seek to keep pace with idle standings leader defending champion Creamline when they deal with their respective assignments in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference today at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
The Crossovers test the mettle of debuting Philippine Army at the 4 p.m. curtain-raiser followed by the Cargo Movers’ 6:30 p.m. battle against Akari.
Chery Tiggo head coach Aaron Velez underscores the need of his team to show consistency and build on the momentum of its 27-25, 25-19, 25-22, win over Cignal last Tuesday.
“In this league every point, every set, every match counts. So, we need to be consistent. We have to get our rhythm as a team and everybody should always be ready,” he said.
Velez will again rely on Mylene Paat, EJ Laure and Shaya Adorador on offense after the trio submitted double-digit points the last time out.
Middles Roselle Baliton and Cza Carandang are also expected to display the same tenacity at the net to disrupt the attackers of the Lady Troopers.
Army is on a mission to bounce back from a winless campaign in the Reinforced Conference last year.
But the Lady Troopers, however, will be missing the services of Jovelyn Gonzaga who elected to focus on beach volleyball with the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia just less than three months away.
Veterans Royse Tubino, Audrey Paran, Jeanette Villareal and Tin Francisco will carry Army’s fight alongside Ivy Perez, Nene Bautista and libero Tin Agno.
Meanwhile, the Cargo Movers eye to get a better result this time after squandering a two-set lead in their thrilling, 25-22, 25-21, 14-25, 20-25, 16-14, five-set escape over PLDT last Tuesday.
“We have a lot of things we need to improve on. We can’t afford to relax. So, we have to improve every day. We have to improve in the next game, and we have to work harder,” F2 Logistics head coach Regine Diego said.
Myla Pablo, who dropped 21 points in her first game as a Cargo Mover, Kim Kianna Dy, Aby Maraño and Ivy Lacsina will again lead the club’s march against the extension team that handed the squad a humiliating defeat in their first meeting during the Reinforced Conference.
The Chargers, on the other hand, absorbed a 15-25, 20-25, 20-25, defeat at the hands of Choco Mucho last Saturday.
Dindin Santiago-Manabat and Janine Marciano will need a lot of help from the rest of Akari to avoid a second straight loss.
