PVL: Galeries not dwelling on tough Game 1 loss to Akari
Galeries’ Jewel Encarnacion reacts during Game 1 of the PVL quarterfinals against Akari.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Galeries Tower is sticking to the positives after falling short against Akari in Game 1 of their best-of-three quarterfinals in the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference on Saturday.
Jewel Encarnacion unleashed an all-around game of 18 points, 18 receptions, and 10 digs but it wasn’t enough for the Highrisers, who squandered a 2-1 set advantage.
“After the game, we had a few regrets because we felt we could’ve done better,” said Encarnacion in Filipino after the 25-21, 19-25, 25-20, 16-25, 11-15 setback. “But our teammates reminded us that the game wasn’t bad since we made it to five sets. They stopped us from getting too caught up in disappointment and negative emotions.”
READ: PVL: ‘High-intensity’ practices help Ivy Lacsina, Akari avoid Galeries upset
Jewel Encarnacion shares her thoughts after Galeries fell short in Game 1. #PVL2025 @INQUIRERSports pic.twitter.com/R2WJ0RVhqM
— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) March 15, 2025
Riding on the crest of their upset win over No. 3 Cignal in the qualifying round, Encarnacion said they moved on from their previous emotional achievement and prepared well for Akari.
The HighRisers committed several out-of-system plays. That’s why the second-round pick of Galeries believes they need to stay on the same page.
“Coach just reminded us to stick to our system because we’ve been preparing for this for the past few days. Once Akari started scoring points consistently, we started thinking on our own about how to stop them. At some point, we got a little off-track and lost focus,” said Encarnacion. “We had some holes in our defense, we weren’t synchronized, and our blocking and backcourt defense weren’t aligned.”
The former University of the Philippines Fighting Maroon is confident her team is capable of coming back in the series.
READ: PVL: Akari survives Galeries for quarterfinals headstart
“We never stopped believing that we could rise above. That’s always been our goal, and we saw in the Reinforced Conference that we had a lot of five-set matches, so we knew we could do it. We were just missing that finishing touch. This conference, we came in with the goal of really stepping up as a team,” she said. “There were ups and downs through the two conferences, but we pushed through.”
Galeries tries to equalize in Game 2 on Thursday at the same venue in Pasig City.
“We’re moving forward, focusing on the next game. We’ll just add more fuel to the fire and not let our morale drop. It’s just the first game—there’s another one coming, and our goal is to make it to the next round,” Encarnacion said.
