NXLED kept its flickering qualifying round hopes alive with a 21-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-14 win over PLDT in the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference on Thursday at the Playtime Filoil Centre.
With their top four bid to fight for, Nxled sealed a statement victory with a 11-2 tear to silence the streaking league leaders.
Stung by a shocking three-game slide, the Chameleons steadied themselves just in time, stringing together two must-win results to wrap up the preliminaries at 5-4.
Now comes the hard part as Nxled no longer controls its own fate and will need either Akari or Creamline, both at 5-3, to fall in their final games on Saturday, while also hoping the tiebreaks swing its way to force a passage through.
PLDT, meanwhile, saw its four-game win run halted but stayed secure in the qualifying round at 7-2, with its final seeding still hanging in the balance depending on Cignal’s (6-2) clash with Creamline.
"I saw consistency, regularity and very good development in our side-out [attacks]," said Nxled head coach Ettore Guidetti.
"Right now, we are finally playing pretty good volleyball together. This is the best that we can do today, let's see if that's enough and have crossed fingers if this is enough to enter the first four."
Reigning MVP Brooke Van Sickle came close to a triple-double, finishing with 21 points, 11 receptions, and nine digs to power Nxled’s charge.
MJ Phillips once again delivered from the middle, firing 16 points built on 11 attacks, three aces, and two blocks.
Jonah Sabete-Escamillan added 15 points and 11 receptions, Myla Pablo chipped in 13 points, while Jules Tolentino steered the offense with 21 excellent sets and three points as the Chameleons ground out the win.
Shot the lights out
The High Speed Hitters broke away from a tight opening stretch and turned a slim battle into a 22-16 cushion.
Nxled answered with a 5-0 run to trim the gap to one, but Alleiah Malaluan and Kianna Dy came through in the clutch to preserve the set win for the High Speed Hitters.
The Chameleons came out firing in the second frame and even as PLDT forced a 22-all deadlock, Pablo and Sabete-Escamillan delivered the finishing blows to level the match at one set apiece.
Nxled further flipped the switch in the third, storming to a 12-4 start and stretched the margin to as much as 12, catching the league-leading High Speed Hitters flat-footed.
Nxled carried that same momentum into the fourth as another strong start put PLDT on the back foot early and never gave the High Speed Hitters a real opening to force a fifth set.
Savi Davison’s 18 points and 17 receptions went for naught, as did Alleiah Malaluan’s all-around 13-point, five-dig, five-reception effort, with PLDT slipping to 7-2 and missing out on clinching the top seed for the time being.
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