MANILA, Philippines — F2 Logistics held off the tough stand of Sta. Lucia Realty to score a 25-16, 20-25, 25-17, 25-16 victory and clinch the third semis seat in the Chooks to Go Philippine SuperLiga Invitational Conference last night at the Imus Sports Center.
Denied an outright semis slot after losing to Petron on the last day of group play, the Cargo Movers didn’t waste the opportunity this time and put up a dominant performance against the Lady Realtors to book their expected place in the Last-4, where they’ll face the undefeated Cignal HD.
Earlier, University of the Philippines-United Auctioneers notched its first win at the expense of Cocolife, 23-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-13.
Isa Molde led the offensive with 14 attacks, one block and two aces while captain Arielle Estranero tossed 35 excellent sets to go with seven markers as the Lady Fighting Maroons broke through after dropping their first four games.
The win sent UP to the battle for seventh against Foton, which earlier won its classification game over University of the East-Cherrylume via default.
Organizers said the Iron Lady Warriors encountered transport woes due to heavy rainfall in Metro Manila brought about by the Tropical storm Henry.
After squandering a 20-17 lead and conceding the first set, the young Lady Maroons regrouped and went on to dominate the more seasoned but listless Asset Managers and landed shots from different angles en route to the upset.
“Our focus in this tournament is to learn from our experience here but we also want to win. So winning this game gives us confidence going to the next game and future competition,” said Estranero.
Meanwhile, Foton has named Edjet Mabbayad as interim coach in place of Rommel Abella.
Foton team owner Rommel Sytin said the squad let go of Abella as it felt the “need for change” following the fancied Tornadoes’ 0-3 start that led to their elimination from the medal rounds.
The club tourney is bankrolled by Isuzu, UCPB Gen and Sogo Hotel with ESPN5, Hyper HD and Aksyon TV as broadcast partners.