Petron, Foton start GPrix title clash

MANILA, Philippines - Petron braces for what could be its toughest challenge to date – a Foton side boasting of three six-footers and raring to foil its three-peat bid in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix finals which unwraps today at the Cuneta Astrodome.

The Blaze Spikers dominated the Tornadoes twice in the elims but that doesn’t guarantee a repeat with the latter underscoring their readiness to topple the reigning champs by upending the top seeded Philips Gold Lady Slammers in the knockout semis last week.

Petron coach George Pascua admits his wards are in for a tough outing.

“They have a huge advantage for having three six footers in (Katie) Messing, (Lindsay) Stalzer and Jaja (Santiago),” said Pascua. “We need to neutralize their ceiling both on offense and defense. We also have to stop Stalzer from doing damage from the wing position.”

Game One of the best-of-three series starts at 4 p.m. with the Blaze Spikers hard-pressed to raise the level of their games to foil the looming threat of the Tornadoes.

One thing going for Pascua is that he boasts of players so rich in talent and championship experience, including Dindin Santiago, Rachel Anne Daquis, Aby Marano and Ces Molina as well as imports in Erika Adachi and her long-time partner in the Brazilian juniors national team in Rupia Inck.

“Foton is our toughest opponent,” said Pascua. “This is going to be an intense battle.”

The Tornadoes, however, do not believe they are the favorites in the finals of the inter-club tourney presented by Asics and backed by Milo with Senoh, Mueller and Mikasa as technical partners and TV5 as official broadcaster.

Foton coach Villet Ponce-de Leon stressed that Petron has the league’s most solid lineup reinforced by equally-seasoned imports.

We have the height but they have the league’s most seasoned players,” said Ponce-de Leon. “Besides, the finals is an entirely different story. Petron has been together for quite sometime and they are already familiar with each other and are capable of overcoming a huge disadvantage. We have to be ready because this team performs best when the stakes are high.”