PLDT continued its dominant start in the Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference, overpowering Galeries Tower with a commanding 25-19, 25-16, 25-17 victory at the Philsports Arena in Pasig for a share of the Pool A lead with Chery Tiggo on Saturday night, July 19.

The lopsided victory followed the High Speed Hitters’ thrilling five-set win over the Creamline Cool Smashers, contrasting sharply with the Highrisers’ five-set loss to the Nxled Chameleons, both last Tuesday.

Unlike their nail-biting finish against the Cool Smashers, the High Speed Hitters displayed a well-rounded performance that easily overwhelmed the lackluster resistance from the Highrisers.

The one-hour, 25-minute romp alleviated some of the pressure on PLDT coach Rald Ricafort, who treated the match almost as a practice session given the Highrisers’ subpar performance.

“Happy na nakuha ‘yung panalo, happy din na nakapag-perform ‘yung second stringers,” said Ricafort.

Galeries coach Lerma Giron expressed her frustration by calling multiple timeouts in the second set, trying to remind her players of their responsibilities and disrupt the High Speed Hitters’ momentum.

Despite her efforts, the Highrisers struggled to respond and failed to rise to the occasion, allowing PLDT to cruise to a 2-0 set lead.

PLDT sustained its dominance in the third set, unloading seven consecutive points, further frustrating Giron and the Highrisers' coaching staff and supporters. 

Although Galeries Tower attempted a late comeback, closing the gap to 16-23, Jovie Prado’s crosscourt hit brought PLDT to match point, and Erika Santos sealed the victory with a powerful attack after Galeries Tower blocked Lena Samoilenko’s attempt.

With the victory, PLDT matched Chery Tiggo’s strong start, showcasing its potential as serious title contender in the mid-season tournament of the league organized by Sports Vision.

“Coach (Ricafort) pushes us every day in training, emphasizing that we must show improvement with each game,” said libero Kath Arado, who earned Player of the Game honors with her outstanding performance, coming through with 16 excellent digs and nine receptions.

Samoilenko finished with 14 points, while Fiola Ceballos delivered 10 markers and Santos, Majoy Baron and Mika Reyes backed them with nine, eight and six points, respectively.

Despite literally holding their guns throughout the match, the High Speed Hitters excelled in spikes, outscoring the Highrisers 43-38. Their defense was particularly unforgiving, with an impressive eight-block performance compared to the Highrisers' two.

PLDT also came away with four aces and scored 20 points off Galeries Tower’s miscues, while yielding just 11 points of its own.

Franz Ronquillo led Galeries Tower with 11 points but had her share of mishits while reinforcement Chuewulim Sutadta struggled for just seven markers and Dimdim Pacres added four points.