CAPITAL1 dropped an upset ax on Cignal with a shock 25-23, 25-23, 25-21 win in the 2025 PVL Reinforced Conference on Friday at the Playtime Filoil Centre.
This becomes only the second straight-sets win in the Solar Spikers’ year-old franchise history.
Bella Belen and Ukrainian spiker Oleksandra Bytsenko had to rally from behind twice in the first two sets before capping an unlikely sweep more convincingly come the final canto.
Bytsenko landed a clutch hit and kill block at the end of Set 1 to erase a 22-23 deficit and snatch an early lead.
It was a steeper climb for Capital1 in the second frame where they first cleared a seven-point hole from 10-17 down before Belen took over to put the set, and eventually the match, away.
"Since the first point, we knew we had a plan and we followed. Even if we had to do some changes, we did. We adjusted the team, especially on the third set. Even if they make adjustments there, we got a big distance before they got super close," said head coach Jorge Souza de Brito.
"We adjusted at the right moments, so I'm happy for that and the tournament is just beginning."
Belen scooped up 11 points and 14 digs to wrap up an important win that sent the Solar Spikers up to 2-2, behind Bytsenko's 23-point, 12-reception double-double.
Iris Tolenada held the playmaking reins with 16 excellent sets and four points, as Roma Doromal had the floor covered in churning out 15 digs and 14 receptions. Leila Cruz also came up big in their mid-set runs with eight points on six attacks and two blocks.
Poor reception from Cignal
Just as the Super Spikers started to turn their 0-2 slump around, they'd then take an unexpected stumble at the hands of a cellar-dwelling tormentor.
Katrin Trebichavska was sent crashing back to earth from her winning debut with 22 points and seven receptions. Erika Santos couldn't get the offense going with just nine markers, even as middle blocker Rose Doria-Aquino ramped it up on the scoring front with eight.
Vanie Gandler made her return from a brief layoff with an undisclosed minor injury. She added just two points.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
