MONTALBAN, Rizal — Akari foiled ZUS Coffee's reverse-sweep bid by holding fort in a 26-24, 25-21, 17-25, 17-25, 17-15 five-set classic in the PVL on Tour on Saturday at the Ynares Center II.
It took three match points for the Chargers to close it out as Eli Soyud scored seven clutch points in the fifth-set tiebreak.
After two crushing losses to begin preseason play, Akari is now on the board as Tina Salak was gited a win on her PVL head coaching debut.
Salak becomes the fourth female head coach in PVL history among the 47 mentors to have called the shots in the league over the last eight years.
Grethcel Soltones delivered a near triple-double of 23 points, 11 digs and nine receptions.
It was the 29-year-old mainstay winger who saved the Chargers from what would’ve two early set losses.
Soltones scored back-to-back hits from a 24-all deadlock after saving a ZUS Coffee set point in the opening frame.
She was also at the forefront of a set-clinching 6-1 blitz in Set 2 which erased the Thunderbelles’ 20-19 lead.
Jov Gonzaga came to life in the third and fourth sets to force sudden death where she capped a stellar 23-point, 12-reception, 11-dig triple-double.
Fifth-overall pick AC Miner, Maika Ortiz and former PVL best libero Alyssa Eroa all made their ZUS Coffee debuts in a hard-fought loss.
Miner hit double figures in her pro debut with 12 points behind Chinnie Arroyo’s 17 markers.
Coach T's surprising welcome-back gift
Salak's first official PVL game at the helm was held back by two matches, coming off her brief vacation in the United States.
But as is the case with taking over a team on short notice, the concurrent Far Eastern University women's volleyball head coach is pleased with the early strides the Chargers have taken even after an 0-2 start to the PVL on Tour.
"Actually, na-surprise rin ako. Na-surprise rin ako sa performance ng team, kasi kakabalik ko lang from vacation," said Salak.
"‘Yung [expectations] namin, hindi ganun kataas but ‘yung resiliency nakita ko. Malaking factor ‘yun sa team dahil ‘yun din naman ‘yung kailangan namin at this point. Aside sa ma-bother kami du'n sa may mga injuries, mas pinili naming manalo."
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