CREAMLINE is in familiar territory but Choco Mucho, PLDT, Chery Tiggo, Petro Gazz and Cignal are in for a big fight as the race to the semifinals promises to be fierce and intense when the Premiere Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference (AFC) resumes on Easter Tuesday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.
The contenders didn’t only reflect during the Lenten break but also strategize for the crucial phase of the single-round eliminations.
Despite a frontrunning 6-1 won-lost card, the Cool Smashers face a challenging stretch ahead—they take on the Angels on April 6, a clash with the Nxled Chameleons on April 13 and a showdown with the title contender Flying Titans on April 18.
They wrap up the preliminaries against the High Speed Hitters on April 25.
With noticeable parity in the league, Creamline no longer holds the same intimidating aura as in its past title runs with the other five teams in contention now possessing talent and resources to compete with the seven-time champions.
The recent defeat to the Crossovers exposed dents in their game and signaled that any team can defeat Creamline on any given day.
Cignal nearly matched that Chery Tiggo feat Tuesday night but the HD Spikers squandered a 2-0 set lead and a 14-11 advantage in the deciding fifth set to eventually yield the match at 14-16.
Choco Mucho, meanwhile, is eager for a rematch with its sister team after falling short in the Second AFC Finals last year.
Led by the dynamic Sisi Rondina, the Flying Titans, tied with the High Speed Hitters with a 5-1 record, are again poised to contend for the championship.
They have relatively easier matchups against Galeries
Tower on Tuesday, Capital1 on April 6 and Strong Group on April 13. After its April 18 face-off with Creamline, Choco Mucho closes out its elims campaign against Farm Fresh on April 23.
PLDT, meanwhile, faces Akari on April 2 and Strong Group on April 9, before taking on contenders Chery Tiggo, Cignal and Creamline on April 16, 20 and 25, respectively.
Petro Gazz, tied with Chery Tiggo at 5-2, will also run into tough rivals in Creamline on April 6 and against Cignal on April 16 but hopes to secure key victories over Galeries Tower on April 20, and against Nxled on April 27.
The Crossovers, riding a three-game streak, aim to continue their momentum
against the HD Spikers on April 11 before squaring off with the High Speed Hitters on April 16. They play against the Chameleons on April 20 before closing out against the Highrisers on April 25.
Cignal (4-2), on the other hand, hopes to bounce back against Farm Fresh on April 4 and gain confidence for their April 11 duel with Chery Tiggo, against Petro Gazz on April 16, and versus PLDT on April 20. They end their eliminations stint against Galeries on April 25.
Despite their lower rankings, Akari, Farm Fresh and Galeries Tower, all with 2-4 marks, seek to pull off reversals in the final stretch and fuel their respective backdoor bids in the season-opening conference organized by Sports Vision.