In a stunning turn of events, University of Santo Tomas-Gameville toppled defending champion Cignal in four hard-fought sets, 25-23, 22-25, 28-26, 25-20, to inch closer to a semifinals berth in the 2025 Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference Wednesday night at the Paco Arena.
Despite committing a whopping 38 errors over the two-hour duel, the red-hot Golden Spikers showed resilience and fire in the crucial moments. They secured their third straight victory while climbing to second place with a 4-1 record in the tournament organized by Sports Vision.
Josh Ybañez led the charge for UST-Gameville, producing an all-around masterclass of 24 points on nine attacks, three kill blocks, and two service aces, complemented by 17 excellent receptions and 11 digs.
(C) Spikers Turf Images
“Happy, but we still need to do a lot of consistency training because there are lots of errors. Nung first three sets, I think we have 31 errors, so ‘yun lang,” said Golden Spikers head coach Odjie Mamon.
“They know what’s in store for them if we win o kaya ‘yung consequence if we lose our upcoming matches. Kasi our aim is to play in the semifinals, so we need more wins,” he added.
JJ Macam contributed 18 points, playing a pivotal role in the fourth set. Al-Bukharie Sali added 12 markers to help seal UST-Gameville’s fourth win in the league backed by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things, and Arena Plus.
Dux Yambao orchestrated 20 excellent sets and added eight points, while Edriel Alabar recorded 19 excellent receptions and 11 digs.
The Golden Spikers aim to secure their semifinals spot when they face league-leading Criss Cross on Friday at 1:00 PM, also at the Paco Arena.
(C) Spikers Turf Images
Cignal, meanwhile, dropped to 4-2, tied with Savouge Aesthetics for third place. Louie Ramirez and team captain JP Bugaoan finished with 13 points each, while Jau Umandal added 11.
The Super Spikers look to bounce back against Savouge on Friday at 6:30 PM.
All games are broadcast live on One Sports and One Sports+, with video-on-demand available via the Pilipinas Live app. Matches are also streamed on spikersturf.ph.
