Spurred by its stirring reversal in the second set, Cignal upended Creamline with a kind of resolve that wins big-time games, pulling off a shock 25-21, 26-24, 14-25, 25-22 victory to secure the first semifinal berth in the Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference here on Thursday.
But the win was hardly a jolt of a result for the HD Spikers but a product of hard work, chemistry and spirit as they rolled to their fourth straight victory they spiked with a mind-boggling fightback from seven-points down in the second frame against a team so rich in championship experience.
They capped their big night by battling back from a lopsided third set defeat and a 15-19 deficit in the fourth with playmaker Gel Cayuna anchoring their dramatic win with a key block and a superb dump that shattered the 22-all count before unleashing two stinging serves to wrap up the highly-charged contest.
Jerrili Malabanan and Rachel Anne Daquis also starred in their roaring fourth set charge with the former chipping in two points and the latter firing a kill to force a tie at 19. Creamline took the next two points but Fille Cayetano's service error in the ensuing play helped set the stage for the HD Spikers' strong finishing kick.
Cayuna's block off Jema Galanza tied the match again at 21 and after Pangs Panaga made up for the Cool Smashers' attack error, Cayuna scored on a 1-2 play, hit an ace and then came up with another power serve which the Cool Smashers mis-received, leading to a Daquis power hit.
The triumph thus firmed up Cignal's hold of the top spot and a sure seat in the next round that will feature two teams from Japan and Taiwan while dealing Creamline its first loss after back-to-back wins in the mid-season conference of the league organized by Sports Vision.
Cignal also ended Creamline's amazing streak that dated back to the latter's eight-match sweep of the Open Conference crown last April to the delight of half of the crowd that packed the Sta. Rosa Sports Complex.
Their resiliency severely challenged, the Cool Smashers bounced back strong in the third and led from start to finish but not after the HD Spikers fought back from 1-6 down with five straight hits before Creamline fuelled another run so decisive it propelled them to a 20-12 bulge enroute to the win.
Just when they thought they had the HD Spikers all figured out after yielding the opening set on foiled attacks at endgame, the Cool Smashers cracked in the face of their rivals' fiery comeback with a spate of mishits after Tots Carlos shoved them to set point on an off-speed hit.
But a service error and back-to-back flawed attacks from Alyssa Valdez and Carlos enabled Cignal to force a tie at 24 with Malabanan lifting the team to the lead with a twisting hit before the HD Spikers snatched the set on another Creamline miscue.
Unfazed by their rivals' battery of heavy hitters, the HD Spikers battled the Cool Smashers power-for-power and took command majority of the opening set marked by tense rallies and spectacular saves then called on Ria Meneses' imposing net defense in the stretch to hack out the win.
The former UST stalwart foiled Carlos to put the team at set point after Valdez uncorked one of her patented crisp hits to cut Cignal's lead to 21-23 then neutralized the former Ateneo star's attack with another timely block to secure the win, highlighted by Cignal's combo play anchored on Ces Molina that made it 23-20.
Cayuna finished with six points on top of producing 17 excellent sets but made her impact at finish with her heroic plays.
Ces Molina stood at the forefront of Cignal's attack with 15 points while Chay Troncoso continued to churn out big games and pumped in 11 hits while Daquis had 10 points and Ria Meneses and Malabanan chipped in seven and five points, respectively.
Tots Carlos also took charge for Creamline with 21 points while Jema Galanza fired 13 hits and Celine Domingo came off the bench to score 11 points but Alyssa Valdez finished with just seven points for the Cool Smashers, who lost despite scoring 56 attack points against the HD Spikers' 38.
