PHILIPPINE Army made a furious third-set comeback to sweep Philippine Navy, 25-20, 25-11, 25-23, at the start of the second round of the Shakey’s V-League Open eliminations yesterday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Just when the Lady Sailors looked poised to challenge the defending champions, the Lady Troopers reeled off 11 of the last 14 points to recover from a 14-20 deficit in the final frame.
Mayeth Carolino fired 16 points built on 11 attacks, three blocks and a couple of service aces to lead the Lady Troopers, who kept solo second with a 5-1 record.
Earlier, Cagayan Valley hardly needed the services of its two Thai reinforcements as the Rising Suns clobbered Far Eastern University, 25-18, 25-10, 25-15, to strengthen their hold of the third spot at 4-2.
Sandra delos Santos, the league top scorer, continued to impress by hitting eight spikes and four service aces in a 13-point outing to lead the Rising Suns.
Joy Cases and Honey Tubino also had nine markers each as the Rising Suns forged a straight-set win even with imports Kunbang Pornpimol and Sutadta Chuewulim playing limited minutes.
“We just wanted our other players to have a chance to play,” said Cagayan coach Mike Rafael. “They’ve (imports) been OK, but they just need to be more aggressive.”
Pornpimol and Chuewulim, who each played only two sets, finished with a combined nine points but the Rising Suns still notched their third straight victory after peppering the Lady Tamaraws with spikes (37-19) and aces (10-1).
The Lady Sailors slipped to 1-5, while the winless Lady Tamaraws skidded to their sixth straight setback.