Despite dropping a pair of 1-3 defeats to their fancied rivals in the opener of their respective Final Four duels in the Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference, BanKo-Perlas and PacificTown Army remain hopeful of forcing a pair of sudden deaths when Game 2 is played tomorrow at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo.
By taking a set against powerhouse PetroGazz and the Creamline, BanKo-Perlas and PacificTown Army showed that the top seeded teams can be stopped and toppled after all provided they sustain their firepower and more importantly show poise and minimize their errors.
The Lady Troopers learned that the hard way when they blew a number of chances to steal the first two sets with miscues down the stretch.
In contrast, the defending champion Cool Smashers displayed championship poise all throughout to dodge the upset ax and keep their win run going coming off a nine-game streak in the double-round elims with a 26-24, 25-21, 23-25, 25-20 victory in Game One of their best-of-three series.
PacificTown fell short by just seven hits in its spiking battle with Creamline and even led in blocks, 7-6, and dominated the service area, 9-5. But Creamline scored 30 points off PacificTown Army’s errors although the Lady Troopers also pounced on their rivals’ miscues to score 23 markers.
It the non-scoring skills, PacificTown held its ground, yielding just five in digging (49-54), two in excellent sets (20-22) and four in reception (39-43), only the Cool Smashers were able to parlay the Lady Troopers’ miscues in the first two frames.
In contrast, BanKo-Perlas scored 24 points off PetroGazz’s errors while giving up just 17 points off their own slips but the Angels imposed their will on the net, producing 64 spikes for a glaring 21-hit lead over the Perlas Spikers, who could only come up with 43, on their way to a 25-19, 25-15, 21-25. 25-12 romp in their own Final Four face-off.
The top-seeded squad likewise lorded it over in blocks, scoring seven, four more than their rivals and capitalized on the Perlas Spikers’ poor service reception, coming through with eight aces against BanKo’s forgettable one-ace effort that further underscored the Angels’ superb reception and floor coverage.
But despite their edge in most departments, Creamline and PetroGazz expect PacificTown Army and BanKo-Perlas to come out strong and with the necessary adjustements that could pave the way for a tighter, fiercer pair of clashes in Game Two that could also lead to a pair of sudden deaths.