Xentro Mall-EAC ended its campaign in the Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference in triumphant fashion, beating fellow NCAA contender The Bayleaf Hotels-Lyceum, 25-13, 27-25, 25-14, at the Paco Arena in Manila Sunday.
The Generals relied on their potent attacks to subdue the Pirates, clinching a particularly tough back-and-forth second set, to finish the tournament with a 2-3 (win-loss) record.
EAC head coach Rod Palmero expressed satisfaction with his wards’ performance, playing up the importance of carrying their momentum into the NCAA wars.
“Malaking bagay yung naging performance namin basta madadala namin ‘to sa NCAA kasi yun naman talaga ang target namin,” said Palmero.
He also cited the strength of the league competition, adding: “Although talagang malalakas yung teams dito, maganda yung exposure na nangyari. Na-meet naman namin yung target namin this conference.”
The Generals dominated the net as they converted 44 of their 97 attacks in the 68-minute match while the Pirates struggled to put in 28 attacks out of 96 attempts.
Ruther Abor spearheaded the Generals’ balanced offense, finishing with 14 points on 13 attacks and a block while Israel Encina and Marvin Romero added seven markers each to the victory.
John Michael Paglaon flashed his superb playmaking skillsand posted 16 excellent sets, enabling all the nine spikers in the match to score at least a point. Joshua Magadan, meanwhile, anchored the team’s defense, finishing with nine excellent receptions and four excellent digs.
Jhon Aquino, on the other hand, led the Pirates, who ended their stint without a single win in five games, with 14 points while team captain Jun Edang had 12 markers and 11 excellent receptions.
