PLDT HOME Ultera rose from a dismal first set to trounce Cagayan Valley, 16-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-23, and complete a 3-0 semifinal sweep of the inaugural Spikers’ Turf Open Conference Thursday at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.
Howard Mojica came up with 18 points, including four blocks, to power the Ultra Fast Hitters in the no-bearing match after both teams had earlier clinched the two championship berths.
Game 1 of the best-of-three title showdown is set at 3 p.m. this Sunday also in San Juan.
The semifinal encounter, although no bearing, showed that the crown showdown will be a thriller as Cagayan, which finished with a 2-1 card, narrowly fell short in each of the last three sets.
UAAP MVP Marck Espejo (19 points), Peter Torres (11 points) and Rex Intal (11 points) led the Rising Suns, who even edged the Ultra Fast Hitters on attacks, 48-46.
In the other match, Cignal hacked out a 29-27, 25-14, 28-26 victory over Air Force to finish with a 1-2 slate in the semifinals.
Red Christensen tossed in nine of his 10 points off spikes, while Reyson Fuentes, Herschel Ramos and Bonjomar Castel wound up with eight points each for the HD Spikers.
Both squads will clash for third place in a best-of-three series starting at 9 a.m. Sunday.
Vic De Guzman and Mark Alfafara teamed up for 25 points for the Ultra Fast Hitters, while Jayson Ramos had half of the team’s six aces on top of three blocks.