Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Myla Pablo flashed her usual endgame brilliance as Pocari Sweat downed Perlas-BanKo, 25-21, 22-25, 25-19, 27-25, Wednesday night to remain unbeaten in the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference at Filoil Flying V Centre.
Pablo dropped a game-high 23 points, including two that snuffed out Perlas’ set-points as the three-time champion Lady Warriors posted their second straight victory.
She got plenty of help from Kai Nepomuceno and Jeannete Panaga, who had 14 and 13 points, respectively. But when the going got tough, it was the team captain who took charge.
“It’s a tough two games for us, maybe we need to work even harder in the next games,” Pablo said in Filipino.
Sue Roces and Amy Ahomiro sparked Perlas’ comeback as the squad reached set point, 24-23, on a net violation by Pocari.
But Pablo fired from the right flank to tie it at 24-24, before Ella De Jesus slipped through two defenders for another Perlas set point, 25-24.
As expected, Pablo bailed Pocari out once again, finding an empty spot in the Perlas turf for 25-all, before Desiree Dadang took advantage of a heated exchange to help seal the victory.
“It’s still a win and we will take it,” said Pocari coach Rico de Guzman, who stressed that the team which has won the past three conferences will need to improve on many aspects to get its championship form back.