Defending champion Cignal made light work of RichMarc Sports 3B, clinching its second consecutive victory in the 2024 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference with an imposing 25-15, 25-20, 25-16 win at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum Sunday night.
Jau Umandal once again led the assault for the HD Spikers, scoring 12 points on 12 attacks in a two-set stint as the bench took over to finish the job in the third, sealing the victory in swift one-hour and 14 minutes.
Coach Dexter Clamor praised his team’s performance but believes they have more to offer.
“Hindi ko masasabi na ‘yun ‘yung best nila kasi I know for sure na meron pa silang mas maipapakita pa, may mas mailalabas pa,” said Clamor.
As the second stringers started in the third frame, the Elite Spikers managed to keep pace early on, forcing an 11-all count before the HD Spikers went on a 6-1 run to build a 17-12 cushion.
Both sides traded hits before Cian Silang, Madz Gampong, and Nas Gwaza connived in a decisive 5-0 run to pull away for good. Silang committed a service error before Gwaza closed it out with a cross-court hit.
“Ganun naman lagi, dapat lagi silang ready. Ganun dapat, kapag hinugot ka ng coach dapat mag-perform ka and ipakita mo yung best mo,” added Clamor.
Mark Calado and Gampong added eight points apiece while Giles Torres added six markers, for Cignal, which set the early pace in the league organized by Sports Vision with a 2-0 card.
The HD Spikers go for their third straight win against the Savouge Aesthetics side on Wednesday at the Philsports Arena.
On the other hand, Ipulan scored nine points while Kurl Rosete had seven markers for RichMarc, which absorbed its second straight loss.
RichMarc Sports 3B will next face Criss Cross on Sunday at the Paco Arena.
--//
