Mika Reyes bolsters PLDT charge in win over Army

PLDT star Mika Reyes gets a kill—just barely—past the Army defense. —PVL PHOTO

George Pascua wanted one thing from his PLDT squad at the start of the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Invitational Conference semifinals on Tuesday.

“I always tell them to start strong and finish the game by executing our plays. Fortunately, we achieved it in today’s game,” Pascua said in Filipino.

The High Speed Hitters, indeed, got off to a solid start against Army Black Mamba at Filoil EcoOil Arena. And when they needed a strong finish, Mika Reyes took charge, leading her squad to a 25-22, 25-18, 25-21 victory.

Reyes, the league’s leading blocker, unleashed a game-high 16 points off 15 attacks and a block, while fellow middle blocker Dell Palomata delivered 12 points to give the High Speed Hitters their first win in the round robin format of the semifinals.

Reyes, the former La Salle star, scored the game-winning attack in the third set and also delivered the last three points of the second set to anchor the victory, benefiting from the expert playmaking of veteran setter Rhea Dimaculangan, who distributed 24 excellent sets.

Toni Basas chipped in 11 points, Fiola Ceballos had 10 points, 15 digs and 14 receptions, while Jules Samonte added nine points and 12 digs for PLDT.

“But we still have a lot of adjustments to make since our next games will be more challenging,” Pascua said.

The High Speed Hitters will face their sister team, the Cignal HD Spikers, on Thursday at Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo City.

The top two squads at the end of the semifinal round will advance to the winner-take-all final, making every win in the semifinals crucial.

Foreign teams Kobe Shinwa University of Japan and KingWhale Taipei will join the midseason tournament race starting on Monday next week.

Army’s leading scorer Jovelyn Gonzaga was limited to just six points in the loss, and the Lady Troopers could not fill the void in their offense. Royse Tubino led Army with 10 points, while Nene Bautista provided the spark off the bench with eight points.

Army tries to bounce back against Creamline on Thursday.