F2 guns for second straight victory

Games today:
(Philsports Arena)
4 p.m. — Creamline vs Chery Tiggo
6:30 p.m. — Cignal vs F2 Logistics

F2 Logistics tries to keep the fire of its previous conquest burning when it shoots for a second straight win to tighten its grip on the lead against struggling Cignal today in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Game time is at 6:30 p.m. with the Cargo Movers putting their hold of the share of the crowded top spot on the line.

Behind an explosive outing from Myla Pablo and a gritty stand in the deciding set, F2 Logistics outlasted Creamline to join its victim in a four-way logjam at the lead along with Chery Tiggo and PLDT with identical 3-1 win-loss records.

Meanwhile, kicking off the double-header playdate is the showdown between rebound-seeking teams Creamline and Chery Tiggo at 4 p.m.

Cargo Movers head coach Regine Diego reminds her squad not to be satisfied with their huge win over the Cool Smashers, 23-25, 25-18, 16-25, 25-23, 16-14, last Saturday but instead use it as fuel for the team's goal of making it to the semifinals.

"I hope our win against Creamline will ignite a fire within our players that they should play the way they played. This is how it should be," Diego said following the second straight head-to-head victory of F2 Logistics over Creamline since joining the league last year.

"Hopefully, the fire in our players won't end with our previous win. We just hope we'll be able to carry the momentum into our next game. We won't stop working hard every day."

Diego is confident that the Cargo Movers would be able to do that with Pablo, who dropped 27 points including a tournament-high five kill blocks against the Cool Smashers, Aby Marano, Kim Kianna, Dy, Kim Fajardo, Ara Galang and Dawn Macandili leading the charge.

She, however, warns her club not to take the HD Spikers lightly despite their 1-3 record, a tally also being shared by Akari.

"We can't say that because they're struggling, we already have the advantage. All teams in the PVL can pull off a victory," Diego said. "We have to focus first on what we should improve on and find ways to get our game going as early as possible."

Cignal, coming off a 26-28, 18-25, 13-25, loss to Petro Gazz last week, will rely on veterans Ces Molina, Rachel Anne Daquis, Rose Doria and Glaudine Trongcoso to get back on the winning track.

In the other pairing, the Cool Smashers and Crossovers try to maintain their seat above the standings and prevent a second straight setback.

While Creamline fought until the bitter end of its five-set match against F2 Logistics in front of a big crowd, Chery Tiggo received a 13-25, 22-25, 25-27, beating at the hands of PLDT last Tuesday.