Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Tiebreaker Times

News

Spikers Turf: Ramirez steps up for Espejo, leads Cignal to verge of Finals


Cignal bucked the early loss of Marck Espejo to get back on track in the 2022 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference round-robin semifinals by eliminating VNS-One Alicia, 25-20, 26-24, 25-18, Saturday at the Paco Arena.

Espejo left the game in the first set with the scoreline just at 6-2 as he hurt his left Achilles anew. They are optimistic that the three-time men’s premier league MVP will be back in their next game.

Coming off a five-set downer against National University-Sta. Elena, the HD Spikers bounced back to improve to 1-1, tied with PGJC-Navy.

“Itong week sobrang exhausted kami, parang roller coaster na masaya noong nanalo kami noong Tuesday and then biglang down noong Thursday na supposed to be sa amin na,” said Cignal head coach Dexter Clamor.

“‘Yung performance nila kanina even though wala si Marck, ‘yung mga nasa bench nagperform, nagcontribute.”

The HD Spikers pulled away from a 19-17 affair with a 6-3 spurt, capped by Alfred Valbuena’s off-speed hit to finish the first frame, 25-20.

But the Griffins stormed back in the second period, dragging it to extended play but shot themselves on the foot with consecutive errors by Sean Oliver and Ben San Andres to give Cignal the 2-0 set lead, 26-24.

And in the third, it was all HD Spikers as they cruised to a 16-11 advantage en route to the 25-18 clincher, again off an error by VNS-One Alicia.

Louie Ramirez stepped up big time for Espejo with 16 points on 13 attacks, two kill blocks, and a service ace.

#ReadMore  Five Spikers Turf teams commit to PNVF Champions League

JP Bugaoan came through with 13 points while first-time starter Chumason Njigha added seven points.

San Andres and Kevin Montemayor paced VNS-One Alicia with 11 points apiece with the former chipping in 14 excellent receptions and five digs.

With the HD Spikers win, the Nationals booked the first Finals ticket.

Cignal and the Sealions will go head-to-head on Tuesday at 5:30 pm for a Finals seat, while the Griffins end their campaign against the Nationals at 2:30 pm.

Written By

Just a kid from Cavite trying to make a difference.


You May Also Like

News

Defending champion Cignal hardly broke a sweat, dispatching RichMarc Sports 3B in straight sets, 25-15, 25-20, 25-16, for its second consecutive win in the...

News

By: Bjorn Del B. Deade Jau Umandal performed as expected in Cignal’s 2024 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference opener, leading the HD Spikers to a...

News

Choco Mucho remained unbeaten, handing Cignal its first defeat, 25-18, 25-20, 25-21, to force a tie at the top spot of the 2024 Premier...

News

By: Bjorn Del B. Deade Defending champion Cignal weathered a third-set challenge by PGJC-Navy, 25-17, 25-16, 27-25, to open its title retention bid in...

News

The Cignal HD Spikers have been a long-time powerhouse team in the Spikers’ Turf, boasting six titles, making them the winningest team in the...

News

As history suggests, rivalries in sports enhance the leagues, the competition, and engage the crowd. Even before facing each other, defending champion Cignal and...

News

Cignal head coach Shaq delos Santos is hoping that the HD Spikers will learn from their mistakes after almost melting down in the third...

News

Cignal survived Nxled’s late onslaught to close out the game in straight sets, 25-21, 25-17, 25-21, in the 2024 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference,...

Advertisement