ClearSkiiin overcame a tough challenge from AEP-Cabstars in four sets, 25-18, 19-25, 25-23, 25-23, to secure its second straight victory in the 2026 Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference on Wednesday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.
After dropping the second set, the UV Smashers found a spark off the bench in Angela Gayud, who helped steer the team to a pair of narrow wins in the final two frames to close out the Cabstars and improve to a 2-0 record in the tournament organized by Sports Vision.
Gayud, making his first Spikers’ Turf appearance, scored 13 points off the bench on 11 attacks and two kill blocks, providing a timely offensive boost to power ClearSkiiin to another hard-fought victory after two hours of play.
“Yeah, credit to AEP-Cabstars. If you watched the match, they really brought their game. We did our scouting, they had some changes in the lineup and so forth, so it cost us a little bit,” said UV Smashers head coach Joe Bangit.
“If anything, that’s on me. It was an exciting match, it definitely exposed some things that we need to work on as a team. Definitely still proud of the effort that the players put on the court and obviously, having Gela (Gayud) next two me shows how deep our bench is,” he added.
AEP-Cabstars threatened to force a deciding fifth set, clawing back to tie the fourth frame at 20-all with a 3-0 run capped by Leo Aringo’s crafty drop shot.
However, just as the Cabstars sensed an opening, Gayud rose to the occasion with a powerful tip over three defenders before JM Ronquillo shut down Aringo with a timely block. The back-to-back plays restored ClearSkiiin’s 22-20 lead and brought the Smashers closer to victory.
The two teams traded points down the stretch, but AEP-Cabstars could not withstand the UV Smashers’ late surge, as Gayud and Jester Bornel delivered the finishing blows to seal the back-to-back wins.
Ronquillo led ClearSkiiin with 16 points on 13 attacks and three kill blocks, while team captain Louis Gamban and Bornel chipped in 11 points apiece.
Klint Mateo continued his stellar play, dishing out 27 excellent sets to go with four points, while Renzel Antonio delivered an all-around performance with six points, 24 excellent receptions, and eight excellent digs.
The UV Smashers held the advantage in attacks, 55-45, and blocks, 13-7, overcoming their 34 errors to secure the hard-fought victory.
ClearSkiiin will aim for a third straight win against VNS-Laticrete on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at the same venue.
Meanwhile, AEP-Cabstars dropped to 0-2, sharing the bottom spot with the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Aringo paced the Cabstars with 17 points and 16 excellent receptions, while Dave Lardizabal added 15 markers and eight excellent digs.
AEP-Cabstars will look to claim its first victory against AFP on Sunday at 11 a.m., also at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.
