PHILIPPINE Army turned Game One of its Finals showdown against defending champion Cagayan into a mere workout after hacking out a 25-19, 18-25, 25-18, 25-5 win Thursday night and moved within arms’ reach of claiming the Shakey’s V-League Season 11 Open Conference title.
The Lady Troopers are now a win away from clinching the championship they last won during the 2011 Open Conference.
Game 2 of the best-of-three title series is set on Sunday.
Jovelyn Gonzaga, the pride of Iloilo, poured in 19 points for Army, which also got 13 from Ging Balse, while newly-crowned MVP Rachel Anne Daquis and Nene Bautista contributed 12 and 10, respectively.
The match took one hour and 42 minutes to complete, but the Lady Troopers only needed 18 minutes to win the fourth and final set.
“Championship ito, nag-expect ako na dikdikan pero kasi kami ng mga teammates ko binigay namin ang lahat ng dapat ibigay, nagtulung-tulong kaming lahat kaya kami nanalo,” said Daquis.
The Lady Troopers opened the fourth set with a quick 7-0 tally, before Rosemarie Vargas stopped the bleeding for Cagayan. But Army was quick to retaliate by scoring nine straight unanswered points to widen the gap at 16-1.
The three-time Philippine Super Liga titlist sealed the victory with an 8-1 run, capped by Balse's two consecutive service aces.
Former University of Santo Tomas standout Aiza Maizo produced 12 points, all from spikes, for Cagayan Valley, while Vargas chipped in 10.
The Lady Rising Suns' five-point output in the fourth set was an all-time Finals low.
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