By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Farm Fresh disarmed prolific scorer Marina Tushova as it swept Capital1, 25-17, 25-23, 25-20, to keep its slim quarterfinal hopes alive in the Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday, Aug. 15.
The Foxies leaned on their solid floor defense to limit the Russian import to only 18 points for the Solar Spikers — a far cry from her 49-point explosion the last time against the Nxled Chameleons.
The win improved Farm Fresh to a 3-4 win-loss record for solo eighth while snapping Capital1’s three-game winning streak and pushed them to a 4-3 mark.
Import Yeny Murillo carried the cudgels for the Foxies with 15 points built on 13 kills and two aces, while Trisha Tubu fired all her 12 points on attacks to overshadow the efforts of Tushova.
Apart from her teammates’ efforts, Tubu credited their coaching staff for scouting Tushova’s weaknesses.
“Talagang pinag-aralan nung coaching staff kung paano namin malimit si Marina, knowing na sobrang taas yung scoring nya. Kaya nagawa din namin yung game plan namin,” said Tubu.
Capital1 had a chance to level the field in the second set when it rallied from a 15-11 deficit to 24-23, but Murillo was there to the rescue, unloading a down-the-line spike for the set victory.
Tushova attempted to lift the Solar Spikers in the third set along with rookie Leila Cruz, but the Foxies held their ground.
Janel Delerio and Caitlin Viray silently fueled Farm Fresh with combined 31 of the team’s 63 digs, just four short of the overall output of Capital1.
Cruz was the other double-digit scorer for the Solar Spikers with 10 points as her other teammates managed only seven points or less.
