MANILA, Philippines — F2 Logistics outlasted Petron in five thrilling sets, 18-25, 25-23, 20-25, 29-27, 16-14, to move on the threshold of the Chooks to Go Philippine Superliga Invitational Conference crown last night at the Filoil Flying V Center.
The Cargo Movers willed themselves back from a 1-2 set deficit and showed character and toughness in the race towards the finish to take the opener of the best-of-three series.
Ara Galang punched in 18 to lead the F2 assault while Majoy Baron added 15, capping her heroics with a clutch block and an ace to seal it for the Cargo Movers.
“We struggled with our passing game especially in the first and third sets,” said coach Ramil de Jesus.
“In the fifth I told the players you’re good individually, some of you are members of the national team and I challenged them to prove their worth, show they deserve to be in the national team,” he added.
Bernadeth Pons and Mika Reyes posted 14 each for Petron, which also drew double digit production from Aiza Pontillas (13), Ces Molina (12), and Sisi Rondina (12).
In the battle for third, deposed champ Cignal HD beat Smart-Army, 25-15, 22-25, 25-20, 25-18.
Rachel Ann Daquis dropped 18 points on her former team to lead the HD Spikers to the podium finish that coach Edgar Barroga considered a success given the predominantly young crew that carried the team’s fight this conference.
“Reaching the top 4 was actually what we expected in this campaign considering our lineup wasn’t as seasoned,” said Barroga in Filipino.
The HD Spikers had gone through the preliminaries unbeaten en route to an outright semis seat only to fall short of a finals stint after losing to F2.
“We also aimed for the finals but unfortunately, you could somehow see the immaturity of the players (in the semis). We’re really happy we got a medal,” said Barroga.