Jema Galanza against F2 Logistics’ wall of blockers. –PVL PHOTO
Years of playing—and carrying majority of the following—in different leagues, F2 Logistics and Creamline finally crossed paths on Tuesday night and gave the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) and its fans what to expect from this brewing rivalry moving forward.
And as far as that rivalry is concerned, it’s 1-0 for the Cargo Movers, who established themselves as legitimate threats to the Cool Smashers’ Triple Crown bid.
Dusting off tough losses in the first two sets, the Cargo Movers held it together to carve out a 22-25, 23-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-11 victory over the Cool Smashers, dealing Creamline its first Reinforced Conference loss before close to 10,000 raucous, animated souls at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.
Lindsay Stalzer, Kim Kianna Dy and Kalei Mau never lost the fight and desire to carry the Cargo Movers to a win in the first meeting between these two storied and proud franchises, stepping up in the final three sets that were nothing less than a classic as F2 won for the third straight time after opening with two defeats because of manpower problems.
The two teams had always been the subject of hypothetical showdowns when both were headliners for different leagues. When all club teams came under the PVL banner, the two teams never got the chance to slug it out either due to the Cargo Movers’ leave of absence or both squads being lodged in different brackets.The first clash between the two squads proved worth the wait.
“Everyone was so excited, all the players on both sides, they were [putting on a] show, hitting, hitting, hitting, hitting, exchanging strong spikes,” said F2 Logistics coach Benson Bocboc.
Protest denied
PLDT coach George Pascua. PVL PHOTO
F2’s victory allowed idle Chery Tiggo to share the lead with Creamline, even as Petro Gazz’s 3-1 record stands after the league earlier in the day denied PLDT’s appeal for a crucial point in a 19-25, 25-21, 25-20, 27-25 loss be reversed.
The High Speed Hitters will play with a 1-4 record going into their last three games and would need nothing less than a sweep to have an outside chance of advancing.
Creamline looked headed for a breeze despite tight wins in the first two sets, only for the Cool Smashers to be befuddled by a strong performance on both sides of the ball by F2 starting in the third set.
Choco Mucho, with long-time coach Oliver Almadro resigning before the game, pulled out a 26-24, 25-10, 25-17 victory over UAI-Army in the first game to wheel back into semifinal contention. INQ