Chef on a Diet-FEU showed remarkable composure by rallying from a 0-2 deficit against PGJC-Navy, winning 21-25, 23-25, 26-24, 25-19, 15-12 in the Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference at the Paco Arena in Manila on Sunday.
In the decisive fifth set, Jerold Talisayan scored two pivotal points, leading to a 12-10 advantage for the Tamaraws. Christian Marcelino halted Navy's momentum with a block point, and Lirick Mendoza swiftly followed with a kill. An attack error by Joeven Dela Vega put the Morayta-based spikers at match point, 14-11, before Talisayan's service error. Dryx Saavedra secured the win with a powerful kill.
FEU head coach Eddieson Orcullo mentioned, “We saw the maturity of each player. We needed to seize the moment, especially when the opposition took the lead; you can't afford to let it slip away.”
Saavedra and Talisayan played a crucial role in the extended third set, enabling FEU to force a fourth set. In the fourth set, the Tamaraws launched a 7-1 run, turning an 18-all tie into a 25-19 victory, leading to the final set.
Ariel Cacao orchestrated the Tamaraws, who improved to 1-0 in Pool D, with a total of 29 excellent sets. Meanwhile, the Sealions fell to 0-1.
FEU will face Bay Leaf Hotels-LPU on Sunday at 1:00 p.m., while Navy will compete against EAC-Xentro Mall on November 5 at 5:00 p.m. at the same venue.
