After suffering their first loss in two years against rivals Philippine Army last Sunday, the Philippine Air Force Airmen struggled to start their game against the Café Lupe Sunrisers, but eventually regained their bearings in the end to take a four-set win, 24-26, 25-18, 25-15, 25-20, Saturday morning at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
“Medyo nagkulang sa decision-making e. Pero siyempre part ng game yun, gusto talagang manalo nung Army nun e,” reflected Air Force assistant coach Dante Alinsunurin about the loss. “Kami parang nandun lang, sayang yung pagkakataon namin nun.”
This win moves Air Force right back up in the mix, posting a 3-1 slate. Café Lupe, on the other hand, drop to a lowly 0-4 record.
However, the Airmen had to fight back from a 0-1 deficit in the game, as the majority of their 27 errors came from the opening salvo of the contest.
“Sabi ko nga sa mga bata, nagkakaproblema kami sa service receive nung una. Tsaka lahat naman ng mga players, pag first set adrenaline talaga nagpapatakbo diyan, bigay todo talaga yung mga yan. Nagkataon naman na yung puntos nila, galing sa mga error namin,” admitted Alinsunurin, who was the team’s tactician for the day.
But with Ranran Abdilla and Edwin Tolentino leading the way, Air Force were able to dominate Café Lupe in the next three sets. Moreover, the Sunrisers’ errors increased as the game progresses, committing a total of 38 in the game.
Tolentino led Air Force with 17 markers, 14 points from attacks and three from blocks, while Abdilla finished with 16.
John Millete paced Cafe Lupe with 13 points, while Julius Sioson added 11 markers.
Air Force will next face the IEM Volley Masters on Wednesday, July 19, at 10:00am. Café Lupe hope to break out of its slump on Sunday, July 23, when they face the equally-struggling Gamboa Coffee Spikers at 1:00pm.
The Scores:
Air Force (3) – Toletino 17, Abdilla 16, Labrador 11, Malabanan 9, Jeruz 5, Lopez 2, De Ocampo 1, Dimaculangan 0, Inaudito 0, Avila 0, Chavez (L), Marmeto (L).
Cafe Lupe (0) – Millete 13, Sioson 11, Adorador 9, San Pascual 7, Lim 6, Sebastian 3, Baldelovar 2, Magdaong 1, Ebrahim 0, Ocampo 0, Magadan (L).
