Akari went down swinging, scoring a four-set upset over the Kalei Mau-less F2 Logistics, 25-21, 22-25, 26-24, 25-22 in its final game in the 2022 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference, Tuesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Dominican reinforcement and three-time Olympian Prisilla Rivera made sure that the Chargers would end their campaign on a winning note, delivering a game-high 32 points on 29 attacks and three blocks.
No other player from Akari finished in double digits as Janine Marciano and Erika Raagas ended up with eight markers each.
Jaja Maraguinot finished with 19 excellent sets to go along with four points while Rachel Jorvina gathered 21 excellent digs and 12 excellent receptions as the Chargers capped off their first PVL stint with a 3-5 win-loss standing.
“Of course, it’s always a good win and I’m happy about that. It’s always a challenge being the youngest one but we’re heading into this tournament with a lot of chances… finally, maybe we got the spirits up of this team,” said Akari head coach Jorge Souza de Brito.
“For the future, we’re gonna be again starting from the beginning so I think we will be much better,” he added.
The Chargers led by as much as five points in the fourth set, 17-12, after Ezra Madrigal nailed a quick hit before Kianna Dy and Lindsay Stalzer joined hands in a 6-3 spurt to pull the Cargo Movers to within two, 18-20.
Rivera took over from there, scoring two consecutive points before committing an attack error and then putting one in again to give her side a 22-19 advantage. Shola Alvarez trimmed it to two once more but Rivera delivered an off-the-block hit to put it back to three.
F2 Logistics closed the gap to one, 22-23, after Stalzer converted on a drop which was followed by an attack error from Rivera. The latter punched one in from the back before the former committed an error of her own which finished the game.
Stalzer paced the Cargo Movers with 17 points on 17 attacks while Ivy Lacsina had 17 as well built on 12 attacks, three blocks, and two aces as Mau missed the crucial game due to a calf injury.
Dy had 11 markers while Aby Marano and Shola Alvarez added seven and six points, respectively, in the loss that dropped F2 Logistics to 3-3.
F2 Logistics will go up against Cignal at the same venue on Saturday at 5:30 PM.
