Marck Espejo acknowledged that Cignal exhibited greater determination following Criss Cross’s disheartening four-set loss to the defending champions in Game 1 of the 2024 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference finals last Wednesday.
Despite coming off a thrilling five-set victory over the HD Spikers in the semifinals, the King Crunchers found themselves struggling to gain momentum in the opening stages of the game.
Slow starts, coupled with Cignal’s relentless energy, emerged as decisive factors in their defeat.
Espejo highlighted a pivotal moment in the second set, where Cignal’s standout player, Jau Umandal, dove over the officials’ table in a remarkable display of effort and determination to save the ball – a testament to the intensity of the finals.
“Well, alam naman namin na babawi talaga ‘yung Cignal kasi natalo sila last time, so mas gutom ‘yung Cignal. Kita naman sa habol ni Jau [Umandal] kanina sa bola, alam mong gusto talaga nila manalo kesa sa amin,” said Espejo after the 25-27, 25-23, 21-25, 19-25 loss.
The five-time Spikers’ Turf MVP stressed the importance of maintaining the right mindset in Game 2 to keep their championship hopes alive.
“So siguro ‘yun, pahinga muna ulit ,tapos tignan namin kung anong magiging adjustment namin sa training bukas,” said Espejo.
“Siguro ‘yung proper mindset lang siguro na championship game ‘to, na parang kasi minsang isang puntos, dalawang puntos, tatlong puntos pinapalipas namin bago kami maka-recover,” he added.
Espejo led the charge for the King Crunchers with a team-best 22 points, showcasing his prowess with 20 attacks and two blocks during nearly two hours of intense action.
The former Ateneo star emphasized the need for error reduction and improved execution as key areas for improvement to extend the series.
“So parang hindi dapat ganun tsaka errors pa rin talaga. Errors din talaga tumatalo sa amin kaya hindi kami maka-execute ng maayos.”
