3B snapped a three-game skid, repelling VNS Always Bright Laticrete with a gutsy fourth set stand for a 25-17, 26-24, 14-25, 25-23 victory to stay in the semifinal hunt in the 2026 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference eliminations on Wednesday at the Filoil Playtime Centre.
After failing to close out the match in the third set, the Event Masters regrouped and held off the hard-fighting Griffins in a tense-filled endgame in Set 4 to pound out what was only their second win – both at the expense of the same team – for a 2-4 record in the tournament organized by Sports Vision.
“Sabi ko nga, ito na ‘yung pinakamadali naming laban. Last time fifth set kami, supposedly straight sets lang. So sana ‘di na maulit, pero nakuhaan pa kami ng isang set eh,” said 3B head coach Arjay Francisco.
“Sobrang importante ito, kasi naghahabol kami ng panalo para makapasok sa top four,” he added.
VNS threatened to drag the match into a deciding fifth set after Jerzy Santos unleashed a backrow attack that shoved the Griffins ahead, 21-20.
But Elijah Guzman misfired on his serve, and 3B’s Kenneth Bartolome and Aldre Ferrer followed it up with consecutive kills to swing the momentum back to the Event Masters, 23-21.
Howard Guerra and Bartolome then traded blows in a tense exchange before Joshua Cruz slipped through 3B’s floor defense for a point as VNS pulled within, 23-24.
Christian Olaes, however, stepped up to deliver the dagger – a perfectly timed quick attack that slammed the door shut on VNS after one hour and 32 minutes of play, marking the start of the second round elims.
John Vincent Ramos paced 3B with 21 points built on 20 attacks and one block, while Olaes played his best game so far with 20 points on 13 attacks. He also accounted for seven of the team’s eight blocks.
Carl Berdal added 12 points, while Kenneth Daynata had an all-around game of 10 points, 15 excellent receptions, and seven excellent digs in 3B’s crucial victory that boosted their chances of making it to the semifinals of the tournament, backed by Alpha Insurance, Arena Plus, Black Mamba, and Premier EMS.
Ferrer orchestrated the offense with 26 excellent sets, while Joshua Datu manned the floor and finished with 19 excellent receptions and seven excellent digs for the Event Masters, who got the win despite committing 29 errors in the match.
3B will return Friday against Alpha Insurance at 3 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Griffins, led by Guzman’s 15 points, and Jerzy Santos’ 12 and Winfred Santos’ 10 markers, absorbed their sixth straight loss and will try to shoot for the elusive win against AEP-Cabstars on Friday.
