Full capacity: Akari stops Creamline’s winning ways

Akari claimed a fourth straight win after putting Creamline’s hot streak to a screeching halt in a hard-fought 25-21, 26-24, 17-25, 25-21, decision in the 2026 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference on Thursday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.

Ivy Lacsina showcased an all-around performance to lead the Chargers’ climb to solo fourth with a 4-3 win-loss record.

The towering winger smashed 18 kills with a kill and an ace while adding a game-high 17 excellent receptions for Akari, which snapped the Cool Smashers’ five-game romp.

Eli Soyud had 15 points, Grethcel Soltones added 14 points and 12 excellent receptions while setter Mars Alba outworked Creamline’s prized playmaker Jia Morad-de Guzman, 18-16, on excellent sets dished out for Creamline.

Akari’s sustained ascent in the standings put the Tina Salak-mentored squad on the right track for the easier route to the semifinals through the qualifying round reserved for the top four teams after the preliminaries.

“I’m very proud of these two (Lacsina and Alba), especially of course to the whole team, even if we struggled at the very start,” said Salak, whose squad started the season-ending tournament at the bottom with a 0-3 win-loss slate.

“There’s a reason why we’re now on a roll, on a winning streak. We inspire each other every day in training. And we don’t lose hope regardless of what happened in the start,” she added.

The Chargers regrouped in the fourth set after a sudden power outage in the third frame.

Akari raced to a commanding 20-11 advantage but encountered serious trouble in the closing stretch as the Cool Smashers made a determined rally to salvage the match.

Lacsina pushed the Chargers at match point, 24-18. Tots Carlos saved a point for Creamline before Jema Galanza pumped in back-to-back hits to close the gap, 24-21.

Chenie Tagaod came off the bench to punctuate Akari’s response to the Cool Smashers’ fightback with a kill to end the two-hour, 14-minute battle.

Not to be outshone was libero Justine Jazareno, who sparkled on floor defense that enabled the Chargers to turn garbage into gold.

Still, Jazareno brushed off praise, stressing that collective effort was key in the hard-earned victory.

The Chargers will try to string a fifth straight win against struggling Galeries Tower on Tuesday before taking on Farm Fresh to end the first round.

Creamline slipped to a 5-2 mark tied with Cignal behind league-leading PLDT (6-1).

Galanza finished with 16 points on 14 attacks and two kill blocks on top of seven excellent receptions to pace the Cool Smashers.

Carlos had 10 points, Pangs Panaga added nine while Bernadeth Pons got eight for Creamline.