Throughout the semifinals, Savouge turned the net into a no-fly zone.
The Spin Doctors were a force to be reckoned with at the front line, averaging 14.33 blocks per contest, highlighted by a 23-block performance against AEP-Cabstars during their three-game sweep of the round-robin semifinals.
But that same dominance did not carry over to Game 1 of the 2026 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference Finals, where they were limited to just seven blocks as Criss Cross repeatedly found the gaps en route to drawing first blood in the best-of-three series.
For Mark Calado, a big part of that breakdown came from Jude Garcia, who imposed his will with a game-high 26 points, uncorking 23 kills on 38 attacks as he repeatedly broke through Savouge’s defense and dictated the tempo in Game 1.
(C) Spikers’ Turf Images
“Talaga siguro nawala sa amin since ‘di ba, ‘yung mga nakaraang laro namin sa semis talagang marami kaming na-block sa bawat kalaban namin,” said Calado, who finished as Savouge’s lone bright spot with 23 points.
“Hindi talaga namin na-stop si Kuya Jude and madami din talaga silang ginawang variation ng palo,” he added.
Still, for Savouge, all is not lost heading into Game 2 as they look to regroup and draw from the same front-line dominance that carried them through the semifinals in hopes of forcing a decider.
With only one day to prepare, Calado said the Spin Doctors will immediately go back to the drawing board, focusing on how to better read the King Crunchers’ attacks and tighten their blocking scheme in hopes of slowing down their opponents in Game 2.
“Sabi ni Madam, happy lang kasi thankful kami kasi nakapasok kami sa championship. Hindi pa naman natatapos yung [Finals], so meron pang Game 2 sa finals, and hopefully sana umabot kami sa Game 3 para doon namin bakbakin,” said the former FEU standout.
“Sabi ni madam, training lang. Bukas, kung ano yung mga lapses namin, gagawin namin sa ensayo, at sana maging mas okay pa yung galaw namin.”
