Chery Tiggo, PLDT don’t give young foes upset chances

Chery Tiggo Crossovers in the PVL All-Filipino Conference. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

Chery Tiggo is not about to get complacent after starting its Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference campaign with consecutive wins, and it wants to continue having its young stalwarts take charge.

“Everything can change in the blink of an eye,” coach Aaron Velez said after his Crossovers dealt rookie squad Galeries Tower a 25-14, 25-15, 25-21 spanking on Thursday for their second straight win and the solo elimination round lead. “We have to remain disciplined.”

With team leader and former Most Valuable Player Mylene Paat still out, Velez continued to let sisters EJ and Eya Laure and Princess Robles loose, as the trio did its damage on yet another foe while the Crossovers continue to build much-needed chemistry they can definitely use moving forward.

“We’re not going to look at the results. What we are looking for is to build chemistry and as planned, whoever we put inside the court needs to keep in step with those who are leading us,” Velez added.

EJ Laure is that team leader with Paat out, and the mother of one has embraced that role and is ready to show that she is an elite player.

“Even before, with (Paat), I have been leading my teammates and I have been helping her unite the team. It’s not new to me and it’s not a challenge,” said the elder Laure, who led Chery with 15 points on 13 attacks.

Another seasoned side in PLDT did not give young Akari a chance in the second game, handily scoring a 25-16, 25-16, 25-23 victory that sent the Chargers back to reality.

Fine adjustments

The High Speed Hitters recognized what it lacked in its opening game loss and the adjustments turned what was expected to be a tight game into a ho-hum affair with the Chargers never really in it.

“The lesson for us is to stay within the system and the additional players fit so well with us,” coach Rald Ricafort said in Filipino. “It’s just that to go to that next level we also need to elevate our play.”

The High Speed Hitters hit a wall in its season-opener against sister team Cignal, but came out with a different resolve and humbled an Akari squad that was coming off a thrilling 21-25, 25-20, 27-25, 19-25, 15-8 nipping of title-favorite F2 Logistics just two nights before.

Admitting to being surprised by the overwhelming support of fans to the country’s volleyball scene, Savannah Davison played without jitters this time to finish with 19 points on 14 kills and three blocks.

“The first game definitely took me by surprise. The fans are amazing, so supportive,” the prolific Filipino-Canadian hitter said. “But when you come from somewhere else it looks different. I am glad. I am all acclimated, I am used to it now and I went into this game as calm as I could be.”

“This is our response to our loss in the first game. At least what we are training for showed and everyone is starting to loosen up, especially Sav,” Ricafort added. “We’re OK despite the game getting close at the end.” Dell Palomata contributed 10 attacks, two blocks and an ace for PLDT.