PVL: Akari survives Galeries for quarterfinals headstart
Akari Chargers during a win over Galeries Tower Highrisers in the PVL All-Filipino Conference quarterfinals.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines–Akari sat on pins and needles before pulling through by turning back Galeries Tower, 21-25, 25-19, 20-25, 25-16, 15-11, on Saturday night at the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All Filipino Conference.
Ivy Lacsina’s hammering strike at match point finally fended off the Highrisers’ repeated attacks to finish with 28 points as the Chargers gained headway at the opener of their best-of-three quarterfinal series.
Eli Soyud added 19 points, highlighted by 18 attacks, the most crucial hits of which came in the last two frames where the Chargers completed their fightback after falling behind by a set.
READ: PVL: As playoffs get going, Akari starts trek back to finals
Akari coach Taka Minowa, Eli Soyud, and Ivy Lacsina after taking Game 1. #PVL2025 @INQUIRERSports pic.twitter.com/VuoMVPqtM7
— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) March 15, 2025
“Our week of preparation paid off. It was the endgame adjustment that helped us nail this win,” said Soyud in Filipino
Defying taller odds, the Highrisers showed their worth right at the start by stunning the favored Chargers, sealing the opening set on Michelle Cobb’s service error.
The Chargers quickly made amends and recovered, racing to a 20-11 advantage built mostly on Lacsina’s vicious attacks.
But the Highrisers refused to immediately go away and cut down the deficit to four on a pair of Elize Ronquillo smashes and Julia Coronel’s deflection.
Fifi Sharma then halted the Galleries Tower rally with a strike down the middle followed by another Soyud’s hit before the Chargers secured Set 2 on Lacsina’s kill block on Ysa Jimenez.
Jewel Encarnacion and Roselle Baliton conspired in the third set as the Highrisers grabbed the advantage.
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Encarnacion’s back-to-back hits broke the last deadlock at 19 before Baliton went to work in protecting their territory with two blocks punctuated by a Jimenez attack.
The Chargers compensated for their failed attempt in the previous frame by forcing a deciding fifth set anchored on Soyud’s timely hits along with the efforts of Lacsina and Sharma at the net.
Sharma’s lightning-fast crosscourt strike put them beyond reach, 24-13, before Lacsina produced another kill that leveled the count after four sets.
“We put premium on defense in the last set while trusting each other in every play,” said Lacsina.
Two big serves by Sharma pushed them ahead in the fifth, 6-3, before the Chargers weathered the Highrisers late comeback on the persistence of Jewel Encarnacion.
After Encarnacion’s ace, 8-9, the Highrisers suddenly lost composure, something that Sharma and Lacsina took advantage of with two consecutive smashes that sealed the deal.
