Petron cruises to PSL finals
Rhea Dimaculangan and Carmela Tunay knifed crucial hits at crunch time as Petron swept its way to the final round, blasting Generika-Ayala, 25-11, 23-25, 25-18, 25-19, Thursday night in the Belo-Philippine Superliga Invitational Conference.
Dimaculangan hit back-to-back aces, while Tunay flicked two hits in a row, all in the Blaze Spikers’ final five points for their fifth straight win at Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
Mina Aganon topscored with 13 points for Petron, which already secured a spot in the final round where the top three teams will be joined by Japanese club Kobe Shinwa.
Petron coach Shaq delos Santos lauded his wards effort but added that “our job is not finished yet.”
“We still have to work very hard because there is still a lot ahead of us,” Delos Santos added.
Delos Santos said their goal was to go all the way to the championship and revive the franchise’s winning tradition.
The Blaze Spikers were the first team to have swept their way to the championship, winning all 13 games to capture the 2015 All Filipino Conference.
The loss pushed the Lifesavers to the edge as their fate will depend on the Foton-Cocolife match, which was ongoing at press time.
A win by the Tornadoes would automatically qualify them and eliminate the Lifesavers.
Generika was in the thick of the fight after forcing a fourth frame through Gen Casugod, Patty Orendain and Angeli Araneta.
But from 18-all, the Lifesavers committed key defensive lapses allowing the Blaze Spikers to finish off the match with ease.
