Ateneo recovers; Creamline nears final 4
Motolite-Ateneo pulled away from the field while Creamline inched closer to the semifinals after crushing their opponents Sunday night in the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference at Filoil Flying V Centre.
Encountering just a few minor bumps, Motolite-Ateneo put Adamson-Akari in its rightful place—winless and at the bottom of the standings—with a 25-23, 16-25, 25-14, 25-20 triumph.
In an out-of-town match, Creamline needed five sets to dispose of Pocari Sweat, 23-25, 25-21, 25-20, 22-25, 15-8, in Legazpi City.
The win was the eighth for the Cool Smashers who, like the BanKo Perlas Spikers, moved within a win of making the semifinals outright.
The Lady Warriors slumped to 5-6 although they still have a solid chance of making the Final Four if they can win all their three remaining matches in the eliminations.
Needing the win to boost its morale follwoing a defeat at the hands of BanKo Perlas, top semifinalist Motolite-Ateneo was all business in scoring their 10th win in 13 matches.
But the Lady Falcons made sure they had their moments in the match before losing for the 10th time.
Hoping to score a morale-restoring win, Adamson caught Motolite-Ateneo napping in the second set to steal a set against the league’s most fearsome squad.
The Lady Falcons paid dearly in the next set as Maddie Madayag, Bea de Leon and rookie Vanie Gandler buckled down to work for a lopsided frame.
In the fifth set Adamson coach Airess Padda was overheard telling her players “they (Lady Eagles) don’t need this as much as we do.”
That worked slightly for the Lady Falcons who led the fourth, 18-16, on an ace by Trisha Genesis.
But Motolite-Ateneo’s Jules Samonte ignited a searing windup with a kill-block before Adamson gave up the next two points via attacking error.
That’s when Gandler pressed it down with back-to-back hits that was followed by a Madayag ace and De Leon tip-in which iced the match in the Lady Eagles’ favor.
