CIginal seeks to regain its winning ways when it battles struggling Smart in the Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference today at the Filoil Flying V Centre.
Action kicks off at 7 p.m. with the HD Spikers looking to bounce back from a sorry loss to Petron in this women’s club tourney bankrolled by Isuzu, Senoh, Sogo, Mikasa, Asics, Mueller, UCPB Gen and Bizooku with Genius Sports as the official technical provider.
Meanwhile, the Blaze Spikers are out to extend its winning run when they collide with winless Sta. Lucia at 4:15 p.m., while Cocolife guns for a fitting followup to its first victory when it tackles Foton in the 2 p.m. appetizer.
Petron, the reigning champion of this battle that also has ESPN5, Aksyon TV and Hyper HD as broadcast partners, remains on top of the team standings with a 5-0 win-loss card, while Foton and F2 Logistics are not far behind with 4-1 and 4-2 slates, respectively.
That makes this match interesting for the HD Spikers as they seek a crucial win that will put them in the top four of this season-ending conference.
Cignal coach Edgar Barroga said they have to play with more confidence, especially after absorbing a sorry 22-25, 16-25, 19-25 loss to Petron in their previous game at the Caloocan Sports Complex over the weekend.
“I want them to be more confident against any team—be it a team-to-beat like Petron or any other team,” said Barroga, adding that the veteran crew of Rachel Anne Daquis, Jheck Dionela, Mumay Vivas and Acy Masangkay has to step up against a dangerous team like Smart.
“They have what it takes to win games. But sometimes, they don’t trust themselves enough and their lack of confidence spills over the court.”
Barroga said Smart is no easy foe.
Despite yielding a 19-25, 12-25, 15-25 decision to red-hot Generika-Ayala, the Giga Hitters showed flashes of brilliance, thanks to the talented core of Grethcel Soltones, Jerrili Malabanan, Aiko Urdas and Jasmine Nabor.
“Smart is a veteran team, which we can’t take for granted,” said Barroga, noting that a victory over the Giga Hitters will serve as a big morale booster to his wards.
“We need to come up with an impressive win in our next game so that the confidence of our players will be restored.”
