Power Hitters take bronze

MANILA, Philippines — PLDT Home Fibr blew a 2-0 set lead and four match points but battled back from the brink of defeat to repulse Cignal, 25-19, 25-18, 20-25, 20-25, 19-17, for the bronze that glittered like gold in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan last night.

The Power Hitters pounced on the HD Spikers’ flawed set play to force a 17-all count then went to Grace Lazard to pull through in a pressure-packed, back-and-forth third-place battle that could easily pass as a title clash for its thrill, intensity and unpredictability.

Lazard turned a chance ball into a crucial point after forcing the 12th and last deuce in the fifth then foiled Ana Artemeva’s last attack to deliver the victory for the Power Hitters.

Outplayed by the power-hitting Erica Wilson in the third and fourth sets, Lazard saved her best for last, scoring nine hits in the decider, spiked by that go-ahead hit and a bronze medal-clinching net defense.   

Lazard finished with 22 points behind Kendra Dahlke’s 27 while Aiko Urdas and Grethcel Soltones combined for 26 hits for PLDT, which went from sixth place to third in its early Superliga campaign.

“The team really had the tendency to relax coming off a win,” said PLDT coach Roger Gorayeb, referring to his wards’ meltdown after taking the first two sets. “But this third place finish isn’t only good for the players but also for the company which has been a staunch supporter of volleyball.”

The high-powered match also served as a fitting appetizer to the Petron-F2 Logistics title clash that was being played at presstime.

Looking solid and composed with a sweep of the first two frames, the Power Hitters slackened in the next two, enabling the HD Spikers to regroup and survive the third behind solid blocking then fought back from a 15-17 deficit in the fourth with a strong finishing kick to live another set.

With Wilson on the firing end, Cignal took five of the first seven points in the decider but Lazard scored on a backrow attack and a tip that slipped through Cignal’s defense before Dahlke banged in a hit to force a tie.

PLDT and Cignal battled through four more deadlocks before the Power Hitters surged ahead again on a Mylene Paat service error then moved to match point on a Wilson attack that came short following a long, nerve-wracking rally.

Wilson redeemed herself and unleashed a hit then Cignal forced another tie on an Urdas’ weak hit. Dahlke came through with back-to-back hits against three defenders to negate Artemeva’s and Wilson’s hits then after the Power Hitters squandered their 17-16 edge on a costly miscue, Lazard took over with her endgame heroics.