ILOCOS NORTE - Choco Mucho imposed its will on the net then pounced on Black Mamba Army's miscues down the stretch in the last two sets as it pounded out a 25-19, 25-23, 25-19 victory to assure itself of a top-five finish in the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference at the PCV Socio-Civic Cultural Center in Bacarra here, Monday.
Kat Tolentino delivered 18 points, all on attacks, while Maddie Madayag and Ponggay Gaston backed her up with 11 and 10 hits, respectively, and Bea de Leon added eight markers for the Flying Titans, who held off the Lady Troopers to extend their winning run to six and bolster their drive for a spot in post-season play of the country's first pro volley league organized by Sports Vision.
The league's tallest team made up of a triple-tower combo in Tolentino, Madayag and de Leon came away with eight blocks, seven more than its rival while producing 43 attack points against Army's 32 to dominate their one-hour, 29-minute encounter.
The Troopers actually produced 76 excellent digs, 15 more than the Flying Titans but just couldn't translate them into points in the face of the latter's solid net defense.
The Lady Troopers, who drew 10 points apiece from MJ Balse-Pabayo and Royse Tubino, dropped to 2-4 in a costly setback that dimmed their semis chances.
Like in its four-set win over BaliPure last Friday, Choco Mucho struggled a bit while trying to finish off Army, which forced a 23-all count in the second but yielded the next point on a net violation and the Flying Titans took the next point and the set on a hit.
The league's lone unbeaten team then raced to a 12-point bulge in the third but yielded the next eight points, sparking hopes for a big Army comeback, 19-23. But the Flying Titans clinched the set and the match as the Troopers rammed two spikes into the net that cut short their rally. (ND)
