Defense wins championships, and Sydney Calderon is well aware of that timeless saying.
That is why Calderon placed strong emphasis on blocking during Savouge’s preparation for the 2026 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference round-robin semifinals—and it has paid dividends in a big way.
After huge wins over the erstwhile unbeaten Criss Cross King Crunchers and the AEP Cabstars, the Spin Doctors have booked their first-ever Finals appearance in the league organized by Sports Vision and supported by Alpha Insurance, Black Mamba, Premiere EMS, and ArenaPlus.
Their net defense proved to be a major difference-maker.
“Unli blockings talaga ang team sa akin sa drills,” said Calderon after their 25-27, 25-15, 25-19, 25-16 win over the Cabstars on Friday at the Filoil Centre in San Juan.
“Meron talaga akong drills na specific for blocking kasi ‘yun ang nakita ko nung eliminations na hindi talaga maganda, we could do better pa sana nung eliminations so sabi ko bawi tayo ng semifinals,” the owner-coach added.
In the elimination round, the Spin Doctors posted a conference-high 13 blocks—relatively modest by Calderon’s standards.
Savouge responded in the semifinals, tallying 14 blocks in its 25-22, 19-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-13 win over Criss Cross.
They followed it up with an even more dominant defensive showing, registering 23 blocks in their four-set victory over the Cabstars.
JP Bugaoan anchored the defensive surge in both matches, finishing with six blocks against Criss Cross and seven against AEP.
Mark Calado also stepped up significantly against the Cabstars, exploding for 28 points off 23 attacks and five blocks, crediting Calderon’s renewed focus on defense.
“Oo talaga!” he quipped when asked about the ‘unli-blocking’ drills.
“Maganda talaga ‘yung training namin nung nakaraan kasi more on blockings din talaga and syempre malaking kumpyansa yun sa susunod na laban namin kasi nung mga nakaraan, hindi ako masyado nakakablock eh so ngayon, ang laking kumpyansa nito para sa akin,” Calado added.
Although already through to the Finals, Savouge is looking to enter the best-of-three championship series riding a seven-game winning streak, so expect them to go all out against Alpha Insurance on Sunday at the San Juan venue.
They are not stopping at a Finals berth. The Spin Doctors want it all.
“Yes naman, nagpipeak na ‘yung bawat isa kasi ‘yung performance namin talagang tumataas and hopefully sana makuha pa namin ‘yung next games namin kasi meron pang isa,” said Calado.
