THE knockout match for quarterfinals berth in the PVL All-Filipino Conference will soon start and the odds don't look good for those facing the top six teams in the standings after the preliminaries.
It's because the teams facing the top six had previously lost their games to the same squads in the prelims. And as if to add more pressure, all the teams that lost were beaten in straight sets.
READ: Savi sets PVL pro record for most points scored in prelims play
But pressure brings out the best in teams and while the top six are favorites, one cannot discount the fighting spirit of a team whose back is against the wall, especially when what is at stake is a trip to the best-of-three quarterfinals.
But there is hope for the losers. They will get one more shot at the playoffs through the league’s first-ever play-in tournament where the surviving top two teams also advance to the quarters.
For background though, SPIN.ph will show how the six qualifying round matchups in prelims play concluded and what we predict might happen in the coming next stage of the conference.
#1 CREAMLINE (10-1) vs #12 NXLED (1-10)
Prelims (Jan. 28): CCS def. NXL (3-0), 25-12, 25-21, 25-19.
Five-peat seeking Creamline will enter the qualifying round as a shoo-in for the quarterfinals.
The Grand Slam winners have been on a tear this conference with 10 wins in 11 matches and before that, they posted a 19-game unbeaten run.
Nxled, however, gathered steam late in prelims play with a four-set win over Galeries Tower and fought fifth-seed Choco Mucho grimly before losing in five sets.
When the Cool Smashers and Chameleons met in January, all 14 Cool Smashers in the match day roster saw action in the straight-sets contest.
Excluding liberos Ella de Jesus and Denden Lazaro-Revilla, all Creamline players scored at least one point led by MVP duo Bernadeth Pons (13 points) and Tots Carlos (10 points).
The missing X-factor for Nxled in that game? EJ Laure, who has normed 12 points in her first five outings as a Chameleon this conference.
In her absence, only five Nxled players scored in the lopsided one-hour, 35-minute match led by newcomer Jaycel delos Reyes with seven attack points.
Whether Laure alone can turn the tide for the Chameleons against the defending champions will be known Thursday.
#2 PETRO GAZZ (10-1) vs #11 CAPITAL1 (1-10)
Prelims (Feb. 11): PGA def. CAP (3-0), 25-19, 25-18, 25-9.
The two teams with the longest active winning and losing streaks, respectively, will cross paths in the qualifying round.
Petro Gazz has won its last nine prelims matches. Capital1 lost its last seven.
When they met just two weeks ago, it became yet another day in the office for the league’s hottest one-two punch.
Reigning MVP Brooke Van Sickle and Myla Pablo joined forces for 27 points in the one-hour, 29-minute contest.
Against a title contender like the Angels, Capital’1s conference-long woes on offense were on display as veteran spiker Heather Guino-o’s eight points paced the loss.
With record-breaking import Marina Tushova onboard last conference, the Solar Spikers broke into the quarterfinals as the eventual surprise package of the 2024 season.
They may not have such a lethal veteran scorer onboard anymore, but there won’t be a better time than now for Roger Gorayeb’s wards to find a way to pull off the same trick twice.
But in the face of a champion team like the Angels whose impenetrable winning tank hasn’t been stopped in three months, this being a tall order for Capital1 is quite the understatement.
#3 CIGNAL (8-3) vs #10 GALERIES TOWER (1-10)
Prelims (Jan. 21): CHD def. GTH (3-0), 25-17, 25-20, 25-19.
Cignal might be undermanned, but they aren’t looking like underdogs one bit in the qualifying round.
The HD Spikers capped prelims play on a three-game win streak in the aftermath of losing veteran duo Ces Molina and Riri Meneses in a contract row earlier this year.
Meanwhile, Galeries Tower lost its last six and has continued its long-running trend of losing steam in the home stretch of what would’ve been ‘winnable’ games on its end.
That wasn’t the case when the Highrisers challenged the HD Spikers last month.
Vanie Gandler owned her new leading role as the team’s top scoring weapon with 17 points built on 13 attacks, three aces and one block along with three receptions.
Also worth highlighting are stellar non-scoring efforts from Gel Cayuna (15 excellent sets) and Dawn Macandili-Catindig (19 digs).
There are still more than a few promising pieces to work with for Lerma Giron’s side as she has versatile setter-spiker Julia Coronel onboard with quality scorers in Jho Maraguinot, Jewel Encarnacion, Andrea Marzan, France Ronquillo and Ysa Jimenez among others.
Led by a decorated libero-captain in Alyssa Eroa, there won’t be any holding back this time for Galeries Tower in a bid to turn its one-win prelims run into what could be its franchise’s single-biggest win yet.
#4 PLDT (8-3) vs #9 ZUS COFFEE (4-7)
Prelims (Feb. 22): PLDT def. ZUS (3-0), 25-17, 25-15, 25-21.
This version of PLDT might give it the best shot yet for a maiden PVL title.
League-leading scorer and spiker Savi Davison capped a historic prelims trail with a 17-piece in Iloilo over ZUS Coffee to lock in the No. 4-seed.
Topped by the biggest win this conference so far against Creamline, the High Speed Hitters will carry the momentum from a four-game unbeaten run onto the next round.
Davison plus a handful of reliable scorers in Majoy Baron, Erika Santos and Fiola Ceballos are eager to complete an encore of its prelims-ending win over the Thunderbelles.
With a formidable floor general in Kath Arado and a sharp one-two setting duo in rookie Angge Alcantara and Kim Fajardo, there aren’t too many reasons to question PLDT’s potential path to championship gold.
But this conference, through all the highs and lows, resurgence has been the central theme of ZUS Coffee’s campaign.
An eclectic mix of youth and experience with No. 1 draft pick Thea Gagate and heralded winger Jovelyn Gonzaga at the forefront has made the Thunderbelles a legitimate playoff contender.
Taking PLDT’s recent run of form into account, it will take a herculean effort for ZUS Coffee to dent what has rather been a near-perfect run for the 4-seeds this conference.
#5 CHOCO MUCHO (8-3) vs #8 CHERY TIGGO (5-6)
Prelims (Feb. 22): CMF def. CTC (3-0), 25-18, 25-23, 26-24.
One would expect perennial playoff protagonists Choco Mucho and Chery Tiggo to be among the possible toss-ups in the qualifying round.
On paper, it doesn’t quite seem to be the case.
The final match of the preliminary round in Iloilo saw a close endgame ultimately ruled by the streaking Flying Titans in just three sets.
Armed with the league’s second-longest active win streak at six, Choco Mucho leaned on the Cebuana duo of Sisi Rondina and Isa Molde to drop 35 combined points to secure the No. 5-seed.
Molde also picked up the pace on defense with 14 points and eight receptions behind two-time best libero Thang Ponce’s 12-reception and 11-dig double-double.
In a shaky campaign so far, even the much-awaited debut of ex-Creamline ace Risa Sato couldn’t stop the bleeding for a Crossovers side that has now lost its last three games before the next round.
Veteran spiker Ara Galang led the losing effort with nine points, 11 digs and four receptions as Sato pitched in two markers.
Both teams know a thing or two about treading playoff volleyball and fighting for titles.
It’ll now just be a matter of which between Choco Mucho’s red-hot consistency or Chery Tiggo’s championship pedigree will outweigh the other.
#6 FARM FRESH (5-6) vs #7 AKARI (5-6)
Prelims (Nov. 30): FFF def. AKA (3-0), 25-23, 25-21, 25-14.
All signs point towards this Farm Fresh-Akari battle being the most unpredictable pairing among the six qualifying round matchups.
For one, they share identical 5-6 records and 15 match points at the end of prelims play — only to be split by the Foxies’ marginally-superior set ratio (FFF 0.818 - 0.727 AKA).
From squad composition to intermittent winning spurts, there really isn’t much that has separated the paths both teams had to go through this conference.
It wasn’t quite the story, however, when the Foxies and Chargers locked horns in the first few weeks of the competition.
The match turned out to be a lopsided rout in Farm Fresh’s favor and took just about an hour and a half to do so.
The league’s fourth-leading scorer Trisha Tubu took over with a strong 21-piece on 18 attacks and three blocks in just three sets.
As it has been for the most part this conference, Akari leaned on Ivy Lacsina to do the heavy-lifting on the scoring front with 13 attack points and four digs.
Both teams had turbulent roads to the qualifying round, with the Chargers losing its last two and the Foxies with one win to carry from their last three prelims matches.
With an ample amount of fire power and veteran experience on hand, this one’s bound to go either way for who’d want a one-way ticket to the playoffs just a bit more.
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