Sta Lucia Superliga tailender no more

MANILA, Philippines — Redemption-seeking Sta. Lucia snapped an 11-game losing streak in the Philippine Superliga as it opened the 2019 Grand Prix with a hard-earned 25-21, 22-25, 25-23, 16-25, 16-14 verdict over Generika Ayala Saturday night at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Winless the entire All-Filipino Conference last year, the Lady Realtors broke into the victor’s column on their very first game in the import-flavored conference, drawing stellar showing from American imports Casey Schoenlein (17 spikes and six blocks) and Molly Lohman (11 points) to pull this one off.

Skipper Pam Lastimosa turned in a solid 10-point effort as well, including the clinching ace in the decider, while new acquisition Amanda Villanueva debuted with 19 digs and 11 receptions with her six markers, as the Lady Realtors gave coach Babes Castillo a winning debut.

“We showed some resilience,” said Schoenlein, who played her first match as a pro. “There’s definitely a lot of opportunity for growth, this is a young team and we arre still kind of figuring out how to work together but we were resilient, we kept fighting and we kept being aggressive, and we stayed together.”

After taking a 2-1 set lead, the Lady Realtors came out flat in the fourth, where they trailed by as many as 13 points and allowed the Lifesavers to force a deciding frame.