RC Cola-Army brandished its double-barreled weapon to take Foton out of the running Tuesday night.
With Jovelyn Gonzaga taking care of the right flank and Rachel Daquis in charge of the left, the Lady Troopers rolled over the Toplander, 25-21, 25-17, 25-23, in the PLDT Home Ultera Philippine Superliga Invitational Cup women’s volleyball at Imus Sports Complex in Cavite.
In taking the solo top spot with an immaculate 4-0 record, RC Cola-Army also booted out Foton, which suffered its third defeat in four outings in the tournament patterned after the FIVB Grand Prix.
Lefty opposite spiker Gonzaga accounted for 24 points, 18 on attacks, to lead the Lady Troopers. She scored nine of her output in the first set where RC Cola-Army battled Foton shot for shot with Dana Henson leading the Toplander.
Foton tried to start out strong in the second set, briefly taking the lead at 5-2, but Daquis restored order for the Lady Troopers by scoring seven straight points.
“It’s not an easy game; we played very hard and I think we just executed our plays a lot better,” said Gonzaga.
Henson tried to inject energy with her high-leaping attacks as the Toplander charged to a 14-7 lead in the third.
But veteran setter Tina Salak kept the Lady Troopers safe by feeding Angela Nunag and Nene Bautista.
The cast of the final round can be completed if Petron wins over Cignal in the second game that was still being played late Tuesday.
The top three teams after this round will advance to the final round against Bangkok Glass from Thailand.