Games today:

(Philsports Arena)

4 p.m. — Creamline vs Galeries Tower

6:30 p.m. — Petro Gazz vs Nxled

Expect Creamline and Petro Gazz to get past Galeries Tower and Nxled, respectively, in three or four sets as they aim to maintain their top two positions heading into the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference qualifying round at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.

However, the struggling Highrisers and Chameleons will go all-out to build momentum and boost their confidence before facing higher-ranked teams in the next round.

The preliminary round reaches its second-to-last playdate today with the Cool Smashers and Angels favored to dominate their lower-seeded opponents at 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., respectively.

Currently, Creamline and Petro Gazz are neck-and-neck in the race for the No. 1 seed, both carrying 9-1 win-loss records and 26 points. However, the Cool Smashers hold a slight edge with a 29-point set win aggregate, compared to the Angels’ 27.

While the battle for the top seed adds intrigue to the title race as both teams will advance to the serpentine pairing system, which matches No. 1 against No. 12, No. 2 against No. 11, and so on.

One challenge for the Highrisers is that the Cool Smashers will be highly motivated to bounce back after watching their 19-game winning streak, which dates back to last year’s Reinforced Conference, snapped by surging PLDT in a five-set thriller last weekend.

That victory by PLDT added an element of unpredictability to the knockout phase of the six-month-long tournament organized by Sports Vision and backed by Watsons, but the top four teams remain solid favorites to advance to the best-of-three quarterfinals, with the middle-ranked squads likely battling for the remaining spots on even terms.

Losing teams in the qualifying round will still have a chance to secure a quarterfinal slot through a play-in tournament for the last two berths.

On paper, Creamline and Petro Gazz are expected to cruise past Galeries Tower and Nxled, respectively. However, the Highrisers and Chameleons, both at 1-9, remain hopeful of pulling off major upsets — though they will need more than just luck to do so.

“It’s okay. Even though we lost last night, we recovered today, so we were able to bounce back a bit. But we didn’t really dwell too much on yesterday’s loss,” Cool Smashers head coach Sherwin Meneses said.

Creamline, boasting a powerhouse lineup featuring Jema Galanza, Bernadeth Pons, Michele Gumabao, Tots Carlos, and Pangs Panaga, holds a clear advantage over a Galeries Tower squad led by Ysa Jimenez, Jewel Encarnacion, Roselle Baliton, France Ronquillo, Jho Maraguinot, and rookie setter hitter Julia Coronel.

While Creamline looks to bounce back, Petro Gazz is seeking to extend its win run to nine against Nxled.

“Nxled had a good game last time. Tonight, I will start analyzing. But right now, I can’t say yet,” Angels head coach Koji Tsuzurabara said.

Petro Gazz’s attack will be spearheaded by Brooke Van Sickle, Aiza Pontillas, Remy Palma, MJ Phillips and Nicole Tiamzon, while the Chameleons will rely on EJ Laure, Chiara Permentilla, Jaycel delos Reyes, Lucille Almonte and May Luna to challenge the league powerhouse.