Cignal dominates Tarasova-less Foton

Games tomorrow

4 p.m. – Generika vs Mane ‘N Tail (W)

6 p.m. – Foton vs Petron (W)

8 p.m. – Cignal vs Cavite (M)

MANILA, Philippines - Cignal pounced on the sidelining of Foton import Irina Tarasova and came away with a 27-25, 25-14, 25-21 victory to firm up its hold of second place in the 2014 Philippine Superliga Grand Prix presented by Asics at the Cuneta Astrodome last night.

Lindsay Stalzer blasted 18 kills, had three aces and two blocks for 23 points while Sarah Ammerman chipped in 15 markers for the HD Spikers, who improved to 3-1 behind the pacesetting Petron’s 4-0 slate.

“I’m very happy with the win, at least we already solidified our hold at the second spot,” said Cignal coach Sammy Acaylar.

Foton lost import Tarasova’s early due to a stiff neck, enabling the HD Spikers to dominate the match.

Earlier, RC Cola-Air Force checked Mane ‘N Tail’s prolific import Kristy Jaeckel in the fourth set as it fashioned out a 25-22, 26-24, 22-25, 25-22 victory to move to solo third with a 3-2 card.

With reinforcements Emily Brown and Bonita Wise doing wonders on the defensive end, the Raiders silenced the blazing guns of Jaeckel to seal their third victory against two losses in the women’s division of the inter-club tournament organized by Sports Core with Air 21, My Phone, Via Mare, Mikasa, Mueller Sports Medicine, Healthway Medical, Generika Drugstore, LGR and Jinling Sports as technical partners.

Mane ‘N Tail fell to 1-3 with still a game left in the first round of the tournament which also has Solar Sports as official broadcast partner.

Brown, the 6-foot-2 All-American from Kansas University, fired 18 kills and two aces for a 20-point output while Wise chipped in 14 points while foiling the hard-hitting Jaeckel in the stretch.

Jaeckel, who erupted for a league-high 40 points in their previous win over Foton, remained impressive as she knocked down 34 hits and three aces to finish with 38 points. But she struggled in the fourth as Brown, Wise and other Raiders defenders joined forces to push her out of her comfort zone.

“We only have one battlecry prior the start of this game: It’s all about Jaeckel,” said Raiders coach Rhovyl Verayo, noting that the charming American is capable of pulling off big numbers after posting a resounding 36 points per match in her first four games.

“We know that she’s the league’s best import, so we carefully studied her game to somehow minimize her attacks. We deployed two blockers every time she attacks and took advantage of the situation whenever she’s in the backline. We might have failed to stop her, but somehow we were successful in minimizing the damage.”

True enough, after surrendering the first two sets, Jaeckel was on fire in the third set as she shattered the 17-all deadlock with four consecutive hits to put the Lady Stallions comfortably ahead, 21-18, en route to an easy set victory.

But the Raiders adjusted in the fourth set as Brown and Wise came up with an awesome defensive effort to give RC Cola-Air Force an 18-13 advantage. And with Jaeckel’s sputtering, Kaylee Manns shifted from setter to attacker to somehow keep the Lady Stallions in the thick of the fight.

The gamble didn’t pay off as Manns’ kill went wide before Brown scored on a booming attack to seal the victory.

“I didn’t expect that Manns will be used as an attacker,” Verayo said. “But it’s okay. I’m glad that our locals stepped up to help our imports, especially on the defensive end.”

Aside from Brown and Wise, Iari Yongco and Maika Ortiz were also impressive, delivering 13 and eight points, respectively for the Raiders, who ended their first round campaign on a sweet note.