After overcoming the massive roadblock posed by Marina Tushova and the Capital1 Solar Spikers, MJ Perez is not resting on her laurels as Cignal gears up for the semifinals of the 2024 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference.
Perez and her team needed to dig deep to survive a dramatic comeback from Capital1, which was fueled by yet another record-shattering performance from Tushova.
Cignal ultimately emerged victorious with a 25-19, 36-34, 16-25, 22-25, 15-12 win in the quarterfinals on Saturday at the Filoil Ecooil Centre.
Reflecting on the intense match, Perez emphasized that the team’s journey is far from over.
“My feeling is that the job here is not done. We still have a job to do and this is the first step, and we knew that it was not gonna be easy,” stressed the spiker from Venezuela.
“We knew that it was gonna be difficult and we saw it. But now, we have to keep our target and still this is not our main target. Our main target is to try to be in the finals.”
(C) PVL Images
The 36-year-old Perez delivered a stellar performance, scoring 34 points through 33 attacks. She also contributed 15 excellent receptions in the grueling two-hour, 35-minute contest.
Perez had nothing but praise for Tushova, who set a new league high for scoring with 50 points – 47 from attacks, two from blocks, and one from an ace – along with 16 excellent receptions and 12 excellent digs.
“It was so challenging. Tushova is a great player. She’s good, she’s very smart,” Perez acknowledged.
The former F2 Logistics reinforcement also commended her teammates for their collective effort in fending off the Solar Spikers, who staged a significant comeback from a 0-2 deficit.
(C) PVL Images
“Of course, in my position, I’m the import of this team – I have to bounce back every time, every chance. It was hard,” said Perez.
“But I keep positive because we have the whole team, you know. We have good middles, we have good opposites, we have a great setter. So this is what I think. This is all about teamwork. So that’s why I was keeping very positive.”
With Tushova and Capital1 now out of the picture, Perez and the HD Spikers are now awaiting the outcome of the Creamline-Petro Gazz quarterfinals matchup.
