PetroGazz bounced back from a tough loss in its previous by scoring a 25-15, 25-17, 25-21 victory over skidding Tacloban as the Angels got back on track in the quarterfinal round of the Premier Volleyball League Season 2 Reinforced Conference at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan on Wednesday.
Ukrainian Olena Lymareva-Flink matched her 22-hit effort in a losing cause to the Lady Warriors late Saturday, spiking her superb all-around game with 15 kills and six aces as the Angels pounced on the Fighting Warays’ sloppy reception to fashion out the lopsided victory.
Anastasiia Trach, also from Ukraine, added 11 markers for PetroGazz, which slowed down a bit in the third as Tacloban kept the game close before the Angels unleashed a strong finishing kick to complete the rout.
“They relaxed in the third but we still held on,” said PetroGazz Coach Jerry Yee of his wards, who fell, 14-15, but won the next four points, only to waver, enabling the Warays to force a tie at 19.
The loss was Tacloban’s second straight in the single round quarters among six teams slugging it out for the last two berths in the semifinals. Creamline and PayMaya topped the elims of the season-opening conference of the league organized by Sports Vision for outright spots in the Final Four.
Thai Hyapha Amporn scored 16 points while Jovielyn Prado added seven markers and Patcharee Saengmuang, also from Thailand, had 11 digs and five hits, including a couple of aces in the third for the Fighting Warays, who finished an impressive third in the elims but went 0-2 in the quarters, including a similar straight-set defeat to the BanKo-Perlas side last weekend.
Earlier, Air Force drew 21 points from Fauzi Ismail as the Jet Spikers turned back the Army Troopers, 25-23, 25-17, 27-29, 25-20, to join the PLDT side in the early lead in men’s quarterfinals of the league backed by Mikasa and Asics.
Howard Mojica added 16 hits while setter Pitrus de Ocampo produced 46 excellent sets for the Jet Spikers, who will next face the struggling Instituto Estetico Manila side on June 20.
Image credits: Nonoy Lacza