Jude Garcia might need to tweak the saying “third time’s the charm” as Criss Cross aims for its first Spikers’ Turf title after finishing as runners-up in the league’s first three conferences.
The King Crunchers secured a spot in the 2025 Invitational Conference championship match on Thursday with a hard-fought 25-17, 23-25, 25-23, 25-23 win over the UST-Gameville Golden Spikers.
This time, there will be no Cignal standing in their way. The Super Spikers were eliminated from Finals contention following Criss Cross’ victory over UST-Gameville.
Criss Cross will face Kindai University in the gold medal match on Saturday at 5:00 PM at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
But even without Cignal in the Finals, Garcia knows that claiming the crown will not be easy.
(C) Spikers Turf Images
“Feel ko, one step at a time lang. Hindi puwedeng maging complacent kung anong ginagalaw namin kasi ang dami naming lapses in the past games. Kaya kailangan namin trabahuhin every point and every set ng match sa championship,” said the three-time MVP, backed by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things, Black Mamba, and Arena Plus.
Criss Cross entered the championship match with an 11-1 record, but that single defeat came at the hands of the Japanese guest team.
Kindai University stunned Criss Cross in their semifinals matchup, 22-25, 22-25, 25-19, 22-25. Although a school team, several Kindai players already had experience competing in Japan’s V.League.
“Mag double time kami sa mga ginagawa namin tapos ‘yung focus namin dapat 100-percent talaga, effort namin 100-percent kasi last game na eh,” said Garcia, fresh off a 31-point outburst against UST-Gameville.
“Kung ano ‘yung dapat namin ibuhos na makakaya namin, kung ano ‘yung pinakabest game namin, ‘yun ang ipapakita namin sa Sabado.”
The championship match will air live on One Sports and One Sports+, as well as through the Pilipinas Live app, which offers video-on-demand options. Games will also be streaming via spikersturf.ph.
