Creamline pulled through in a wild, furious third set finish then imposed its will in the next to carve out a tough 25-22, 23-25, 25-22, 25-20 victory over Petro Gazz to force a four-way tie for the lead in the Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan last night.
Tots Carlos fired away 18 points, Jema Galanza pumped in 17 hits and Riza Sato chipped in 11 points while playmaker Jia De Guzman put in a game expected of her - 27 excellent sets, including a one-hander for a Sato attack at the height of Creamline's fiery windup that made it, 22-16, in the fourth.
The Angels scored the next two points to stay in the match but an Alyssa Valdez power blast and a Michelle Gumabao crosscourt hit put the Cool Smashers at match point. The crowd favorites, who swept the Angels in the Open Conference finals last April, then clinched the hard-earned victory on an MJ Phillips' service miscue after Jonah Sabete scored on a down-the-line hit.
"Medyo slow start yung first and second sets, medyo marami yung basic errors namin. Buti na lang naka-recover sa fourth set," said Creamline head coach Sherwin Meneses.
"Ta-trabahuhin muna ulit namin sa training yung mga basic error, pero yung Petro Gazz naman talagang contender talaga 'yan so sabi ko sa mga players 'wag tayo mag-pabaya," he added.
The win tied Creamline with Cignal, Choco Mucho, and PLDT Home Fibr for the early lead in the single round robin elims among seven teams with the top four advancing to the next round where they will be joined by guest teams from Japan and Taiwan.
Myla Pablo and Phillips finished with 15 and 14 points, respectively, while Aiza Pontilllas added nine hits for the Angels, who looked headed to wresting control after their second set win and their big blast in the third that fizzled out in the end.
Valdez settled for an eight-point performance but Carlos, Galanza, and Sato more than made up for the slack with their combined 46-point showing.
After splitting the first two sets, the Cool Smashers lost a 17-15 lead in the pivotal frame as they yielded six straight points as Phillips took charge for Petro Gazz but the former fought back from four points down to force a tie at 21.
Nicole Tiamzon put Petro Gazz back in the lead with a blast but the Cool Smashers pounced on their rivals' attack error, wrested control on a Sato ace and a block on Phillips after a big save before taking the set on a Sabete attack error.
Creamline rallied late in the first set on an eight-hit run, wresting control at 22-22 on Myla Pablo's back-to-back mishits and though the former MVP rebounded with two power hits, the Cool Smashers clinched the win behind Galanza's off-speed hit and a power blast with noted closer Valdez scoring on a kill to wrap up the frame.
Trailing midway in the second, the Angels charged back to force a tie at 19 then broke away from a 21-all count on a Seth Rodriguez quick hit, a Pablo off-speed, and a block. The Cool Smashers saved two set points on a Galanza push and a Petro Gazz miscue but the Angels pulled through in the ensuing play on Pontillas and Seth Rodriguez's block off Valdez.
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