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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Volleyball devider Nxled roars back, halts PLDT to stay in qualifying round hunt

Nxled roars back, halts PLDT to stay in qualifying round hunt

Published Mar 19, 2026 06:47 pm

At A Glance

  • The victory lifted Nxled to a 5-4 record at the end of its prelims campaign, temporarily placing the team at No. 5 as fellow contenders Akari and Creamline, both at 5-3, have yet to wrap up their assignments on Saturday.
Brooke Van Sickle celebrates a point with Nxled teammate MJ Phillips. (PVL Images)
Brooke Van Sickle celebrates a point with Nxled teammate MJ Phillips. (PVL Images)
From early uncertainty to total control, Nxled flipped the script in emphatic fashion, overpowering an erstwhile surging PLDT side, 21-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-14, to breathe life into its Qualifying Round bid in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the FilOil Centre on Thursday.
After a shaky opening set marked by poor reception and hesitant play, the Chameleons regrouped quickly, tightening their floor defense and executing with precision to turn the tide. Their defense, improved cohesion and spread-out play disrupted the High Speed Hitters’ rhythm, allowing Nxled to dictate the pace the rest of the way.
The victory lifted Nxled to a 5-4 record at the end of its prelims campaign, temporarily placing the team at No. 5 as fellow contenders Akari and Creamline, both at 5-3, have yet to wrap up their assignments on Saturday.
PLDT, meanwhile, slipped to 7-2 but remained at the top of the standings despite the loss, which snapped its four-game winning streak. However, the High Speed Hitters showed signs of cooling off after a strong run, with key players Savi Davison and Alleiah Malaluan unable to sustain their usual offensive firepower under Nxled’s relentless pressure.
Four Chameleons finished in double figures, underscoring the team’s balanced attack. Setters Jules Tolentino and Djanel Cheng alternated almost seamlessly, spreading the offense and keeping PLDT’s defense guessing and scrambling in the last three sets.
Nxled seized momentum in the second frame and never looked back, turning what was expected to be a tightly contested third frame into a dominant display. The Chameleons overwhelmed the league’s top blocking squad with a 12-point rout, showcasing both power and finesse.
Bracing for a big PLDT fightback in Set 4, Nxled instead encountered only brief resistance. The Chameleons won the first three points, held a slim 13-11 advantage, then gradually pulled away behind a well-distributed offense while capitalizing on the High Speed Hitters’ lackluster play.
If their Set 3 performance was impressive, their fourth-set showing was even more remarkable. Nxled displayed the strength and chemistry that had been missing during their four-game skid, while simultaneously exposing the cracks in PLDT’s armor.
“I’m really happy with my performance, but honestly I couldn’t have done this without my teammates. It’s a reminder of the push I needed,” said Phillips, who earned Best Player of the Game honors with 16 points, including three aces and two blocks.
“We needed this game – it was really important. Coming into it, we were locked in. We made sure to communicate constantly, and I think we really took care of business,” she added.
Brooke Van Sickle, Jonah Sabete-Escamillan, and Myla Pablo led the charge, mixing strong attacks with clever drop balls and placement shots that repeatedly caught PLDT off guard. MJ Phillips also bounced back from a slow start, providing additional firepower and giving Nxled more offensive options.
Escamillan’s power blast against two PLDT defenders sealed Nxled’s impressive bounce-back victory in one hour and 42 minutes, re-establishing the team as one to watch in the season-ending conference organized by Sports Vision.
The win marked a crucial turnaround for Nxled, which had struggled through a four-game slump after sweeping its first three matches. With renewed confidence and sharper execution following a four-set win over the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles last week, the Chameleons now find themselves back in contention at a critical stage of the tournament.
“I’m really happy with my performance but honestly I couldn’t have done this without my teammates. It’s a reminder of the push I needed,” said Phillips, who earned the Best Player of the Game honors with 16 points, including three aces and two blocks.
“We needed this game, a really important one, coming into it, we were really locked in we made sure to communicate constantly and I think we really took care of business here,” she added.
Van Sickle overcame a slow start to finish with 21 points, while Escamillan powered through with 15, and Pablo added 13 as Nxled dominated PLDT on the attack, 63-47.
Davison led PLDT with 18 points but couldn’t sustain her early surge. Malaluan also faded after scoring most of her 13 points in the first two sets, MJ Baron contributed eight points, while Kim Dy was limited to just six markers.
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