Farm Fresh leaned on its composure in two tightly fought sets before unleashing a decisive third-set assault to sweep Galeries Tower, 25-23, 25-22, 25-15, and spoil the PVL debut of top overall pick Lams Lamina in the All-Filipino Conference Siklab Series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday.
The Foxies had to dig deep against a stubborn Highrisers side that refused to back down in the opening two sets. But after weathering the early challenge, Farm Fresh found another gear in the third, turning a close contest into a rout to join opening-day winners Creamline and Choco Mucho among the early conference leaders.
The victory came in the first leg of the league’s novel three-series format, which will culminate in a grand championship next year.
Mylene Paat-Rezanova provided the offensive spark, coming off the bench to fire a game-high 14 points on 11 attacks and three kill blocks as Farm Fresh wrapped up the match in one hour and 32 minutes.
“Tumatak lang talaga sa isip ko ‘yung laging sinasabi ni coach Koji (Tsuzurabara) na laging intentional sa lahat ng gagawin,” said Paat-Rezanova, who scored nine of her first 10 points in the second set to help the Foxies fend off the Highrisers’ determined challenge.
“Not only spike, but to kill. ‘Yun ‘yung talagang mindset ko, knowing na opposite player ako. Kailangan ‘yung ang tignan na ‘yung sinet sa’min, kailangan patay agad. As much as possible, ‘yun talaga, intention ko talaga na makapuntos agad,” she added.
Galeries Tower’s resistance, however, finally gave way in the third set as Farm Fresh turned a 7-all count into a commanding advantage with an explosive 11-0 run.
The Foxies attacked from all angles during the decisive stretch, while the Highrisers’ offense sputtered and consecutive errors from Lycha Ebon and Camille Victoria capped the meltdown. Galeries Tower struggled to recover from the devastating run, allowing Farm Fresh to cruise to the finish and complete the straight-set victory.
Ces Molina came close to a double-double with nine points and 10 excellent digs, while Trisha Tubu made an impact off the bench in the last two sets, scoring nine points, including the match-clinching kill that pierced Galeries Tower’s token defense.
Louie Romero orchestrated the offense with 12 excellent sets, while Maicah Larroza anchored the floor defense with 11 excellent receptions and eight excellent digs.
Farm Fresh will look to sustain its winning form against Nxled on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.
For Galeries Tower, the defeat spoiled the much-anticipated PVL debut of Lamina, who struggled to find her rhythm and finished with nine excellent sets as the Highrisers joined Capital1 and Akari in the loss column.
Erika Deloria led Galeries Tower with 10 points, while Jean Asis contributed six. Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, Gayle Pascual and Ebon added four points apiece.
The Highrisers will have little time to dwell on the setback as they seek to bounce back against defending champion Creamline on Saturday at 6 p.m.
