PLDT cruised past Vietnam's Kinh Bac Bac Ninh, 25-23, 25-14, 25-23, in the 2023 PVL Invitational Conference semifinals at the PhilSports Arena on Monday night.
Fiola Ceballos delivered 11 points on eight attacks and three aces as the High Speed Hitters followed up a sweep of F2 Logistics and improved to 2-2 (win-loss) before facing unbeaten Japanese squad Kurashiki Ablaze on Thursday.
The Vietnamese guest side struggled to regain momentum after a narrow two-point defeat in Set 1, leading to its second loss in as many games and its first against a local team.
“Every other day yung games so [focused kami] sa training talaga. Recovery rin siguro sa katawan ang key kasi sobrang tight ng schedule tapos training sa depensa, review everyday, at lahat lahat talaga,” Ceballos said on PLDT’s preparation for its final semis match in three days’ time.
Arado shows way for PLDT
Ace libero Kath Arado led the way on defense for PLDT with 21 excellent digs and 15 excellent receptions.
With 18 errors in three sets, Kinh Bac Bac Ninh struggled to keep pace with PLDT’s formidable attacking trio of Ceballos, Royse Tubino (12 points), and Mich Morente (11 points).
For the second match running, Nguyen Huong paced the Vietnamese guests with 14 attack points. They face defending champion Creamline on Tuesday.
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