Creamline Cool Smashers won the PVL All-Filipino Conference title. – PHOTO OF PVL
Tickets for this game were sold out just 12 minutes after the box office opened.
Creamline certainly took longer than that — and a tougher warm-up road — for the Cool Smashers to keep what’s legit and, along with brave team Petro Gazz, deliver a series of Premier Volleyball League titles. (PVL) remember for a long time.
And with Cool Smashers playing when the only option left is to win, the rest of the season really looks bright for this resilient team.
With her relentless attack and uncompromising defense, Creamline on Thursday — and for the second game in a row — won the opening set, 20-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-15 and won the All-Philippines Conference championship in front of a bustling crowd of more than 12,000 people at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“The players just reacted,” coach Sherwin Meneses said in Filipino during a celebratory party at center court. “The dedicated players and with the support of the management are the assets of the team [for the rest of the season].”
Attack trio
Tots Carlos produced a performance worthy of MVP. —PHOTOGRAPHY OF PVL
The attacking trio of Michele Gumabao, Jema Galanza and Tots Carlos was too much for the Angels, whose offense flared up when they needed it to work.
Of course, Creamline’s defense has a lot to do with that as the Angels are limited to just 53 points in the final three sets.
The celebration in the stands began when an Aiza Maizo-Pontillas kill was thwarted by a double block. And after Petro Gazz saved a championship point 24-15, Galanza rose above the defense in a coordinated run to score her 19th point in the center of the Angels’ floor.
unique
WATCH: The Cool Smashers and their fans celebrate their sweetness #PVLAFC2023 title. | @LanceAgcaoilINQ pic.twitter.com/jMl3tcM6ae
– INQUIRER sports (@INQUIRERsports) March 30, 2023
It was a very unusual way for Creamline to win its sixth title in eight Grand Finals, as it needed to recover from a painful loss in Game 1, where the Angels performed in form that made them look like the most popular candidates.
“Not difficult [to bounce back],” said ace-setter and Finals Player of the Year (MVP) Jia de Guzman. “Afterward [the] Game 1 [loss], everyone is ready to cheer up, ready for the next day of practice. We have our relationship in the team. We just play for each other.”
Carlos, meanwhile, head an MVP . conference with an overwhelming performance that confused the Angels before the decider.
Carlos took 16 points, assisting Galanza and Gumabao, who had 18 points to complete a remarkable rejuvenation process that made her a vital piece from a player who played a key role last season.
“So happy to have this opportunity,” said Gumabao. “I haven’t played yet [this well] awhile.”
This is the fourth Filipino crown for the Creamline franchise, and it marks the debate over a Grand Slam, the tournament in which the Cool Smashers almost got shot after losing in the Final Four of the Conference Boosted by Angels along with Lindsey win Vanderweide.
For Petro Gazz, this is the third time it has finished second here.
Celine Domingo is the fourth player in double digits for the Cool Smashers with 16, and with Alyssa Valdez expected to return from a knee injury later in the year, Creamline really looks like it’s armed to the teeth. to make the second triple-crown sweep straight of the season.
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