For the first time this season, two powerhouse PSL squads did not disappoint and treated fans to a splendid, drawn-out battle.
RC Cola-Army and F2 Logistics came into Saturday as the only two undefeated teams in the league. The Lady Troopers rallied back from a 0-2 set-deficit but succumbed in the fifth set, as the younger Cargo Movers kept the pace fervent in the fifth set, leaving Army in their dust.
The Lady Troopers, as they have throughout their storied franchise history, would have taken the loss in stride and rested their weary bones. Only, in a scheduling quirk, they had to take on F2 again the following day.
With several key Lady Troopers in the late stages of their careers, Army slogged through the Sunday rematch while the Cargo Movers maintained the same fire they’d had 24 hours prior. Army lost in straight sets for the first time since they were still in the V-League last December.
“Siguro, lumabas lang talaga ‘yung pagkabata ng team ko,” noticed F2 head coach Ramil De Jesus after their triumph.
“Kung anong sakit ng katawan ng mga player ko, doble siguro ng sakit ng katawan nila [Army].”
“Nandoon pa din ‘yung mental part ng game namin, nawala lang talaga ‘yung physical,”echoed Army head coach Kungfu Reyes.
“Kita naman na alam namin kung ano dapat ang galaw, kita namin kung saan ang punta ng bola, pero hindi na talaga sumusunod sa galaw ng isip ‘yung galaw ng katawan namin.”
Army’s 38-year-old setter Tina Salak played a key role on the Saturday match but was worn down a day after. She, like a lot of Army’s key players, could not withstand the toll of back-to-back games, Reyes admitted.
“Sinubukan naming magpaikot ng mga player pero wala din. Lahat naman kami gustong manalo, hindi lang talaga sumang-ayon ang mga katawan namin.”
Army take on the Foton Tornadoes on Thursday at the De La Salle Lipa Gym in Batangas City to continue their second round campaign. With a few days of rest under their belts, Reyes hopes to get a rejuvenated effort from his wards.
“So back-to-back losses; hindi namin to ginusto pero nandiyan na. Matututo na lang kami sa mga pagkakamali and go from there,” he closed.
