MANILA, Philippines – Contender Choco Mucho stayed meltingly hot in the 2025 PVL All-Filipino Conference, flying to its fourth straight win for a 6-3 record off a four-set win over a middling Akari, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 25-15, at the PhilSports Arena on Saturday, February 8.
Sisi Rondina led the Titans in the win with 18 points off 17 attacks and 1 block, as the well-rested Titans, in their first game in 16 days, escaped a complicated logjam in the standings to sit in joint third with sister teams PLDT and Cignal.
Undefeated Creamline sits alone on top with an 8-0 card, while rival Petro Gazz is just one step below at 7-1.
Knotted frames at 1-1 and 23-all at a crucial third-set juncture, Akari shot itself in the foot twice as an Eli Soyud serve sailed way out for a Choco Mucho set point before Cams Victoria’s quick attack again shot far out with no block touch called, despite the Chargers’ clamor otherwise while having no challenges left.
The bottom then fell out completely for Akari by the fourth as the Flying Titans rode their momentum to an 8-3 starting spurt, capped by a crafty Deanna Wong 1-2 play to force technical timeout.
The Chargers never threatened from that point despite nearing the gap at 13-8, as Choco Mucho bombed away a game-sealing 7-1 run afterwards to mount a comfortable 21-9 lead and never look back.
Dindin Manabat kept up her scoring streak with 12 in the win, followed by 8 from Isa Molde and 11 excellent sets from star setter Deanna Wong.
Ivy Lacsina tied Rondina with 18 points in Akari’s descent to a 5-5 slate, while Alas Pilipinas teammates Faith Nisperos and Fifi Sharma scored 13 and 10, respectively.
Nxled shines again after dark 15-game freefall, trips lowly Galeries Tower
Meanwhile, Nxled finally won a game under the tutelage of new head coach Ettore Guidetti, taking down fellow cellar-dweller Galeries Tower in four sets, 25-20, 19-25, 25-14, 25-23, to snap a 15-game losing streak and tie the Highrisers at 1-8 for the new conference.
Veteran acquisition EJ Laure flexed her poise in the back-and-forth contest, powering down a conference-best 19 points on 14 attacks and a whopping 5 blocks for the Chameleons. Captain Chiara Permentilla tallied 14 points, while May Luna-Lumahan sparked 12 off the bench in just three sets played.
Former Nxled key cog Jho Maraguinot paced the loss against her old team with 14 points as fellow vet Graze Bombita added 11.
All holding 1-8 cards, Capital1, Galeries Tower, and Nxled make up the bottom quarter of the league’s standings, far away from No. 9 Farm Fresh at 4-5. – Rappler.com