Chery Tiggo clawed its way into the winning column with a 25-21, 25-23, 25-22 victory over Farm Fresh in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday, Oct. 17.

The Crossovers fought back a shaky start as they trailed for most parts of the match, but managed to regain their bearings particularly in the third set to start their title campaign on a good note.

Sisters Eya and EJ Laure starred for Chery Tiggo with 14 and 13 points apiece including combined 24 kills, while Ces Robles came off the bench in the second set and finished with 10 points.

Farm Fresh appeared to be dictating the pace in the third frame to extend the match by leading 18-10, but the Laure sisters refused to be intimidated and hammered down powerful spikes to close the gap at 19-all.

The Foxies continued their assault and took a 22-20 lead, but the Crossovers were quick to recover by firing five straight points including a hard smash from EJ Laure to seal the match in their favor.

“Siguro nagkulang kami sa communication, pero mabuti at nagawan namin ng paraan para maipanalo to,” said Robles.

It was the same in the first two sets where Farm Fresh led 20-15 in the opening frame, before Chery Tiggo unleashed a 10-1 run courtesy of the Laure sisters.

The second set also saw the Crossovers playing catch up with the Foxies, before Imee Hernandez’s strong serves and Robles’ crosscourt kills untangled them from a 21-all deadlock to set victory.

Chery Tiggo’s triumph overshadowed the efforts of Trisha Tubu and Jade Gentapa, who shone for Farm Fresh with 15 and 10 points to no avail.

While the Foxies were able to deflect the Crossovers’ attacks by managing seven blocks, it still wasn’t enough as Chery Tiggo outplayed them in attacks, 49-43.