Games April 3 (The Arena, San Juan City)
4:15 p.m. – Foton vs Cignal
7 p.m. – Cocolife vs Sta. Lucia
Powerhouse Petron and defending champion F2 Logistics carved out contrasting victories over the weekend to sustain their dominance in the 2018 Chooks to Go-Philippine Superliga (PSL) Grand Prix at the Baliuag Star Arena in Bulacan.
The Blaze Spikers took the best that the hard-fighting Smart Giga Hitters could offer before they settled for a hard-earned 25-22, 22-25, 25-18, 26-24 victory that stretched their unbeaten start to eight games.
Veteran import Lindsay Stalzer, the tourney’s Most Valuable Player in 2015, tallied 19 points, built around 17 attacks and two aces, while locals Ces Molina and Aiza Maizo-Pontillas filled up the void left by injured American import Hillary Hurley by tallying 13 points apiece for Petron.
Former La Salle star Mika Reyes also did her fair share on the defensive end by lacing her nine-point output with three blocks, all of them against Smart’s power-hitting import Gyselle Silva who exploded for 39 points.
“Smart gave us a very good fight,” said Reyes. “Kudos to Gyselle Silva. Her heart was there, making sure that all her spikes would be converted into points. We were inspired to stop her. I told myself that I will block her no matter what.”
Not to be outdone were the Cargo Movers who breezed past the Generika-Ayala Lifesavers, 25-22, 25-14, 25-10, for their seventh win in eight matches.
Ara Galang proved she has fully recovered from a recurring knee injury, knocking down 13 hits, four aces and a block to help F2 Logistics overcome the absence of American opposite Kennedy Bryan.
Silva produced 32 kills, two blocks and five aces. (Jerome Lagunzad)
