Powerhouse teams Creamline and Cignal gun for championship berths against separate rivals Sunday in the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The Cool Smashers take on sister team Choco Mucho Flying Titans at 3 p.m. while the HD Spikers square off with the Petro Gazz Angels in a pair of semifinal matchups expected to go down the wire.
Organizers decided to bring the action at a larger venue after The Arena in San Juan City became jampacked with more than 5,000 spectators while other fans were not able to get inside.
Both Creamline and Cignal are staking their unbeaten runs, with the Cool Smashers edging the Flying Titans, 25-18, 17-25, 25-19, 25-11, and the HD Spikers sweeping the Angels, 25-21, 25-23, 25-23, in Game 1 of their respective best-of-three affairs Friday.
But expect Choco Mucho and Petro Gazz to go all out with high hopes of extending the series into a knockout match.
Tots Carlos remains Creamline’s go-to player after exploding for 26 points in Game 1, while help will also come from Alyssa Valdez, Jema Galanza, Jia De Guzman and Celine Domingo.
Choco Mucho matches it up with its own frontline courtesy of Kat Tolentino, Bea De Leon, Cherry Nunag and Deanna Wong.
In the other matchup, Rachel Daquis’ leadership will serve as another key factor in Cignal’s campaigns with Ces Molina, Roselyn Doria and Ria Meneses providing assault on all angles.
Petro Gazz, meanwhile, has the trio of MJ Phillips, Grethcel Soltones and Aiza Pontillas to challenge the HD Spikers.