Army gains s’final berth

ARMY came back from two sets down to bundle out National U, 22-25, 19-25, 25-21, 14-25, 15-7, and clinch the first Final Four berth even as Air Force assured itself of a playoff slot with a similar five-set win over PLDT Home Telpad in the Shakey’s V-League Season 11 Open Conference at Filoil Flying Arena in San Juan last night.

Jovelyn Gonzaga unloaded a team-best 21 hits, including 17 kills and four blocks, while Rachel Ann Daquis, Nerissa Bautista and Ginie Sabas added 20, 12 and 11 hits, respectively, for the Lady Troopers who barged into the semis with an 8-2 card.

With Jaja Santiago on the attacking end, the Lady Bulldogs took control of the first two sets but failed to defuse the Lady Troopers’ comeback, capped by the Season 8 champions’ domination of the decider.

NU bowed out with a 3-7 mark.

Earlier, Air Force went to Maika Ortiz in the fifth set as it turned back PLDT Home Telpad, 25-21, 22-25, 17-25, 28-26, 15-8, to assure itself of at least a playoff for the last semis seat in the mid-season conference sponsored by Shakey’s and backed by Mikasa and Accel.

Ortiz took over in the decider with powerful smashes and finished with a team-high 19 hits, helping seal for the Raiders their seventh win against four defeats to bolster their semis drive in the event organized by Sports Vision.

Judy Caballejo, Joy Cases and Jocie Tapic provided vital support as they pumped in 16, 13 and 11 hits, respectively, for the Raiders.

Air Force coach Clarence Esteban later said the key was letting the players decide for themselves during the game.

“I just let them play,” said Esteban in Filipino. “I just told them that even if we play bad as long as we win, it’s okay. But of course, it’s nice to win games by playing well.”

PLDT actually finished ahead in spikes, ramming in 64 attacks against Air Force’s 54, doubling its rivals’ aces with six, making 17 more digs than Air Force’s 40 and producing 65 excellent sets as against the Raiders’ 51.

But Air Force took the set that mattered most while coming through with a huge 17-block performance, seven more than the Turbo Boosters.

While boosting its semis bid, Air Force also foiled PLDT Home Telpad’s own attempt to nail the first Final Four berth in the tightly fought quarterfinal race.

Despite the loss, PLDT Home Telpad remained in second behind Army (7-2) with a 7-3 card but will still take on the league’s top two teams—Cagayan Valley and Army—for its final two matches.

For a while, Air Force looked in control with its well-coordinated attack  and solid court coverage in the opening frame. But the Raiders sputtered in the next set, enabling the Turbo Boosters to even things up and seize a 2-1 lead with their own attacking spree anchored on the power-spiking troika of Suzanne Roces, Gretchel Soltones and Angela Benting.