Faces Petron in Superliga Invitational semis
MANILA, Philippines — Smart-Army took the last semis seat in the Chook to Go-Philippine Superliga Invitational Conference as it hammered out a convincing 25-19, 25-22, 25-21 victory over Generika-Ayala last night at Filoil Flying V Center.
The Giga Hitters, continuing their vast improvement and determined to show they belong after a winless debut last conference, stepped up big time and outduelled their quarterfinal rival with their stifling floor defense and efficient execution to clear the way for their milestone Last-4 appearance against Petron.
Veteran Jing Balse spearheaded the Smart-Army’s offensive and unloaded seven attacks, including the semis-clinching kill, while Alina Vicar skillfully orchestrated the offensive and tossed 25 excellent sets as the Giga Hitters earned the right to face early semifinalist Blaze Spikers in tomorrow’s KO semis.
“Alam namin malakas ang Generika, natalo nila ang Petron last time pero kahit sino kalaban handa kami, pinag-aralan namin ang galaw nila (We knew Generika is a strong team as evidenced by their win over Petron but we’re ready for whomever we face. We prepared hard for them),” said Vicar.
The loss sent the Lifesavers down to the battle for fifth against Sta. Lucia tomorrow.
The other semis pairing pits Cignal HD against F2 Logistics.
Earlier, Foton cruised past University of the Philippines-United Auctioneers, 25-14, 25-14, 25-14, to finish the mid-season conference at No. 7.
Bea de Leon was adjudged player of the game, accounting for five attacks, one block and one ace in the Tornadoes’ straight-set triumph.
In the first game, University of the East-Cherrylume capped its stint with a hard-earned 22-25, 26-24, 25-19, 21-25, 22-20 victory over Cocolife.
Mary Ann Mendrez dropped 27 points and had 28 digs to lead the erstwhile winless Lady Warriors to the breakthrough W that allowed them to finish ninth in the 10-team tourney.
“This is most memorable for us and a great learning experience going to the UAAP,” said Mendez, who was backed by Juliet Catindig’s 18, Judith Abil’s 13 and Mariella Gabarda’s 11. “Teamwork did it for us, everyone contributed.”
The tournament is supported by Isuzu, UCPB Gen and SOGO Hotel with ESPN5, Hyper HD and Aksyon TV as broadcast partners.