Nxled refused to let an exhausting five-set marathon turn into a costly hangover.
Less than 24 hours after being pushed to the limit by EST Cola, the Chameleons summoned enough grit, composure and late-game firepower to beat the Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam side, 25-20, 31-33, 25-17, 25-22, on Friday and keep their flickering Finals hopes alive in the PVL Invitational at the Araneta Coliseum.
The Chameleons could have easily folded after surrendering a grueling 44-minute second-set duel, especially after the emotional and physical toll of their five-set loss to EST Cola the previous night.
Instead, Nxled responded the way teams with something to fight for do.
They dominated the third set, weathered a furious fourth-set comeback and held their nerve in the closing exchanges to even their record at 2-2 and pull level with the PLDT High Speed Hitters in third place.
Teams of lesser mettle might have succumbed to fatigue and frustration after dropping such a marathon set. Nxled did the opposite, turning the setback into fuel and playing with renewed urgency in the third.
But the fourth set proved that the job was far from finished.
Nxled appeared headed for a comfortable finish after racing to a 19-10 advantage, only to let its foot off the gas. The Chameleons relaxed on attack and lost some of their defensive bite, giving the Vietnamese side an opening it eagerly seized.
Ho Chi Minh steadily chipped away at the deficit, putting together an 11-3 surge that brought it within 21-22 as skipper Thi Kim Thanh Dang drilled a down-the-line hit, suddenly putting the Chameleons under pressure.
Nxled sued for time.
This time, there was no panic.
Coach Guidetti Ettore calmly reminded his players to organize themselves and, most importantly, protect the ball.
The Chameleons responded.
Playmaker Gel Cayuna immediately went back to one of Nxled’s most reliable weapons, feeding MJ Phillips for an unmolested quick attack that restored a two-point cushion.
Then Jonah Escamillan delivered another powerful blast that clipped two Ho Chi Minh defenders before bouncing out of bounds, putting Nxled on match point.
Dang delayed the celebration with a clever drop ball, but Cayuna, who finished with an impressive 35-excellent set performance, knew exactly where to go when the pressure was at its highest.
Phillips.
The playmaker fed her again for another quick attack, and Phillips made no mistake, hammering the ball into the heart of the Ho Chi Minh defense. It bounced off the floor and out of the court, finally ending the Vietnamese resistance in two hours and four minutes.
For Escamillan, the victory was as much a test of endurance as it was of volleyball.
“Sobrang nakakapagod,” said Escamillan, still trying to catch her breath after finishing with 18 points.
The effort came less than 24 hours after she erupted for 26 points in Nxled’s heartbreaking five-set loss to EST Cola.
But fatigue, she said, was something the Chameleons simply had to overcome.
“Tinibayan lang namin ang mental namin for this game,” Escamillan said.
That mental toughness became the difference.
Nxled did not have the luxury of dwelling on the loss to EST Cola. It had to recover quickly, reset emotionally and physically, and return to the court knowing another defeat could severely damage its bid for a place in the Finals.
Instead, the Chameleons kept themselves firmly in the hunt.
Myla Pablo matched Escamillan’s team-high 18 points, while Phillips poured in 17 and EJ Cariño sustained her strong play with 16. Jacqui Acuña chipped in 12 points, and Cayuna added five alongside stellar playmaking.
For Ho Chi Minh, Dang led the effort with 15 points. 16-year-old Thi Bich Diep Ho delivered 13 points, scoring the crucial bulk during a tense Set 2 victory, while Thi Nhung Dao added 11. Thi My Xuyen Le and Thi Diem Phuong Le rounded out the scoring with eight and seven points, respectively.
The victory also gave Nxled a measure of redemption after the second-set collapse. After allowing Ho Chi Minh to escape with the marathon frame, the Chameleons tightened their defense, became more deliberate in transition and leaned on their quick attack game to seize control.
Phillips proved particularly dependable when Nxled needed points most, while Cayuna remained composed in orchestrating the offense.
The fourth-set wobble nearly spoiled all of that work.
But when Ho Chi Minh came charging back, Nxled showed the maturity to stop the bleeding rather than allow another collapse.
And that may have been the most encouraging part of the victory.
The Chameleons were tired. They were coming off a five-set defeat. They had just lost a 44-minute set and later squandered a nine-point lead.
Yet when the match tightened, they did not unravel.
They organized. They protected the ball. They trusted their bread-and-butter play.
And, ultimately, they finished.
After surviving one of the most physically demanding stretches of their campaign, the Chameleons can now look ahead with something more valuable than fresh legs: momentum.
