De Jesus, La Salle spikers hope they have found a home in F2

Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

After a successful season, Ramil de Jesus hopes he has found a team that will take care of his players for the long haul.

The F2 Logistics coach bared this wish after they scrambled to contain RC Cola-Army, 25-13, 25-20, 20-25, 20-25, 18-16, last night and take the bronze medal in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix.

With the franchise winning the All-Filipino and finishing third in the Grand Prix, De Jesus said the Cargo Movers management has expressed interest in supporting the team on a more permanent basis.

“That’s what they said, especially with the players contracts to be implemented next year,” said De Jesus.

His club, made up of his current and former players from La Salle, has carried the name of several PSL franchises but only for short periods.

This time, he said, F2 Logistics proved they are worthy of a long-term commitment.

The Cargo Movers and the Lady Troopers fought in a nail-biting match that served as the appetizer to the Game 1 of the finals between Foton and Petron at FilOil Flying V Center.

The finalists were playing at presstime.

F2 stormed to a two-set lead and 16-13 in the third frame only to see RC Cola-Army fighting back one point at a time.

“From there, I saw that we were losing grip and not pressing down,” said De Jesus, who got 26 points from import Hayley Spelman, 14 from Aby Marano and 12 from Ara Galang.

The Lady Troopers got 21 points from Kierra Holst but it was Jovelyn Gonzaga who engineered the comeback.

Gonzaga fired 19 markers.

“We couldn’t control Jovelyn. It was her all the way,” said De Jesus.

The two-hour, seven-minute match was very close on all departments except for the digs, where RC Cola-Army showed determination in making 47 against F2 Logistics’ 28.

Mika Reyes also played a key role for F2 Logistics as she took charge in the crucial stretch to help seal the victory.

Holst tied the count at 16 in the nerve-wracking fifth set before Reyes soared for a quick kill set up by Kim Fajardo to give the Cargo Movers the lead, 17-16.

Reyes, who was part of the team that competed in the FIVB Women’s Club World Championship last October, finished with nine hits, but made her presence felt on defense as she deflected a lot of attacks.