The 2019 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference will enter a crucial juncture in the competition on Wednesday, July 3 at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
The best-of-three semifinals will feature the top four contenders who have emerged out of the six-team field in the import-flavored conference.
Having lost just a single game to Creamline for a 9-1 slate, league-leaders Petro Gazz Angels look to carry their dominance into the next round behind high-scoring reinforcements Wilma Salas and Janisa Johnson.
However, Petro Gazz will have to fend off the win-hungry BanKo Perlas Spikers.
After acquiring Sutadta Chuewulim in the wake of Kia Bright’s departure midway through the elimination round, the Perlas Spikers changed their status from afterthought to playoff-bound. They ended the preliminaries with a 4-6 slate – enough to blur the 3-7 Motolite out of the playoff picture.
On the other hand, the reigning champions Creamline Cool Smashers are riding the crest of a nine-game winning surge.
Since dropping their conference-opener to Petro Gazz and re-integrating Thai mentor Tai Bundit a few days later, Alyssa Valdez and the Cool Smashers turned their fortunes around to keep pace with the top teams.
Still, sustaining momentum is going to be a tall order, as they will face the momentum-busters PacificTown-Army Lady Troopers.
Stopping the Perlas Spikers – who were then on a two-game win streak – in their tracks to close out elimination round with an even 5-5 card, PacificTown will try to duplicate the feat and quell Creamline’s surge.
Though they will miss the services of head coach Kungfu Reyes, who will heed the call of national duty, the Lady Troopers will still parade a local core of veterans flanked by two towering reinforcements in Olena Lymareva-Flink and Jenelle Jordan.
Game Two will take place on Saturday, July 5 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo. The semis heads back to San Juan on July 10, if any of the series reach the limit.
