Criss Cross secured a morale-boosting victory against VNS, winning decisively, 25-14, 25-15, 25-15, during its debut in the 2024 Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference on Wednesday at the Ynares Sports Arena.
The match took an unexpected turn when Kim Malabunga suffered a freak accident during the official warm-up, landing awkwardly on a ball, resulting in a dislocated right ankle and a sprained left ankle.
Despite this setback, the King Crunchers remained focused and dominated the Griffins throughout the match.
“Siguro, ang pinag-usapan namin ay hindi kami magpapa-apekto sa nangyari kasi unang una, parte ng laro ‘yun. Ang ginawa namin ay nag-focus kami sa kung ano ‘yung ina-analyze namin,” said Jude Garcia, who led the team with impressive scoring.
Criss Cross exhibited total dominance, dispatching the young VNS team in just one hour and seven minutes, with Open Conference MVP Garcia contributing 18 points – 16 from attacks and 2 from blocks.
New additions Francis Saura and Nico Almendras also made strong debuts for the King Crunchers, contributing 13 and 8 points, respectively.
Almendras also added seven excellent receptions.
Middle blockers Chu Njigha and Gian Glorioso stepped up in Malabunga’s absence, each scoring six points in the contest.
“Maganda, sobrang nakaka-overwhelm kasi lahat ng bagong members ng team namin nag-contribute. Malaking factor talaga ‘yung addition nila sa amin,” Garcia added.
Criss Cross converted 47 attacks out of 88 attempts, while VNS managed only 27 kills and four kill blocks.
The King Crunchers will next face the D’Navigators on October 27, Sunday, at 6:00 PM at the same venue.
On the other side, Charles Segui led VNS with eight points, plus six excellent digs and five excellent receptions. Howard Guerra and Kenneth Daynata each contributed six points in the loss.
VNS will look to bounce back when they take on Martelli Meats on Sunday at 4:00 PM, also at Ynares.
