The Foton Tornadoes continued to separate themselves from the field after dumping the Cignal HD Spikers in three sets, 25-19, 25-14, 25-16, Tuesday afternoon at the General Trias Sports Center in Imus, Cavite.
The depleted HD Spikers matched the league-leading Tornadoes point-for-point to start the match until Foton found their groove. The defending champions took a 15-12 lead after gutting out consecutive rallies. Reigning GP MVP Lindsay Stalzer broke Cignal’s reception with her emphatic jump serves, extending Foton’s advantage to 23-17 after two aces. Cignal tried to rally back bt a Chie Saet error followed by a Jaja Santiago ace gave the set to Foton.
A flurry by the Tornadoes lambasted Cignal in the following set as Foton’s defense and service clicked, powering them to an 11-3 lead. Instead of letting up, the Tornadoes continued whipping the HD Spikers, going up by as much as 11, 20-9, to close out the frame.
Foton nearly took control of the third set but early errors halted their momentum, seeing the HD Spikers mount an early 8-7 lead. Going to their three major scorers in Jaja Santiago, Maika Ortiz, and Lindsay Stalzer, Foton slowly built a seven point lead, 17-10. How Foton finished the match was indicative of how they dominated throughout, pounding the HD Spikers on the serve and the block.
“I though my team played well but we did nothing special,” Foton head coach Moro Branislav said. “There are things we still need to improve before we go to the knockout semifinals.”
Stalzer tallied a game-high 17 points while Ortiz contributed 11 markers, coming mostly from her signature slide hit.
On Thursday, Foton (8-1) meets fellow semifinalists Petron (8-1) for the top seed.
Cignal reinforcement Laura Schaudt managed 12 points while Janine Marciano chipped in seven.
Cignal (1-8) face RC Cola-Army (3-5) in their final elimination round assisgnment on Thursday as well.
The Scores:
Foton (3) – Stalzer 17, Ortiz 11, Santiago 8, Usher 8, Manabat 7, Dimaculangan 3, Orendain 2, Araneta 1, Perez 1, Cerveza 0, General (L).
Cignal (0) – Schaudt 12, Marciano 7, Santos 6, Delos Santos 2, Laborte 2, Mercado 1, Paat 1, Saet 1, Bernal 0, Patilano 0, Cortel (L), Dionela (L).
