[ad_1]
Marina Tushova leads the Capital1 Solar Spikers against the Petro Gazz Angels in the PVL Reinforced Conference. -MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Capital1 notched its biggest win in franchise history by defeating Petro Gazz in the PVL Plus League match at the Philippine Arena on Tuesday.
Marina Tushova scored 24 points, all but one of which came on offense, to lead the Solar Spikes to a 26-24, 25-20, 25-18 sweep of Petro Gazz as Capital1 improved to 1-1.
“I’m really happy because who would have thought we could win two sets in a row? (People) think we are a low-level team and to win two sets in a row against an experienced team is a big boost for the young players,” coach Roger Golayeb said in Filipino.
Schedule: 2024 PVL Enhanced Conference
“We were definitely well prepared for the Angels yesterday though,” he added. “And our defense was really solid, so it worked, and even I was surprised.”
Jorelle Singh and Des Clemente each added nine points, with Clemente recording five of Capital1’s eight blocks.
Iris Tolenada played a key role in the match against the two-time defending champions, playing a brilliant 15-set performance.
Iris Tolenada of Capital1 Spikers. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
“In the last match, we struggled to fight back, but now we don’t have to, so I’m really happy,” added Golayeb, as Capital1 recovered from a slump in losing to Akari in four sets in their Group B opener.
The Sun Spikers corrected the mistakes from their last loss, where they committed 34 errors and only 17 this time.
The Petro Gazz had an exceptional performance, with Brooke van Sickle being the only Angels player to reach double figures with 19 points. Jonah Sabete and Cuban import Wilma Salas were less impressive with only seven points.
read: PVL: Capital1 shows “strong” defense despite losses
“I didn’t talk much before the match. I (tried to) stay calm (unlike) Filipinos who are always happy and share emotions… I just had to focus,” Tusova said.
“I’m really happy because I helped in some way in our win today and I’m really proud of my teammates,” said rookie opposite hitter Leila Cruz, who won her first pro game.
Already close to a major victory, Capital1 led 17-11 in the decider.
KC Galdones then made a serve error that gave the Sun Spikes a 22-17 lead before Julia Ipac found a spot on the Angels court to hit the ball out and Singh sealed the win with a powerful smash off the block.
“It feels great to win because every day in practice we talk about being a family and being good teammates, and today we were able to do that,” Tolenada said.
Unable to save your subscription. Please try again.
Your subscription was successful.
“Everyone stayed true to their assignments… When we stick to the plan, we are more successful,” she said, adding that Capital1 will hope to continue this new momentum in Saturday’s match against Cignal, one of the top teams in the current group.
[ad_2]
Source link
