CIGNAL formalized its entry into the semifinals of the PVL 2nd All-Filipino Conference and doomed the Gerflor Defenders to another winless tournament, 25-22, 25-11, 25-10, at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Tuesday.
With their eighth win in 11 games, the HD Spikers completed the semifinal cast while overtaking Chery Tiggo for the No. 3 seed. Sister teams Creamline and Choco Mucho are the others in the Final Four.
Ten different Cignal players scored in the convincing victory led by Ces Molina and Gen Casugod’s nine points each.
“I think ito yung time na dapat hindi kami maging complacent kasi going to semis, magiging mabigat yung mga games namin.” said Molina. “We're really preparing para sa semis.”
Meanwhile, Danika Gendrauli topscored for the Defenders with nine points.
Cignal will likely face the Choco Mucho Flying Titans in a best-of-three semifinal series beginning on Thursday, unless league-leader Creamline loses to in three or four sets to newcomer Galleries Tower in the day's other game.
Led by Player of the Game Gel Cayuna’s five points and 16 excellent sets, Cignal hardly broke a sweat as the Defenders never posed a threat after a close opening set.
A strong start by the upset-seeking Defenders saw them go on a 4-1 run to pull within two points of Cignal, 19-21.
But the HD Spikers returned the favor with their own 4-1 scoring burst, punctuated by a Roselyn Doria quick to wrap up the set.
The narrow loss seemed to dampen Gerflor’s spirits as the cellar dwellers hardly made their presence felt thereafter.
Cignal dominance
Cignal dominated in the second and third sets to complete the sweep and gain the three points they needed to leapfrog Chery Tiggo in the standings.
The HD Spikers went on a 12-4 and 13-3 runs in the second and third sets, respectively, to send Gerflor reeling to an 0-11 record for the conference.
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