Creamline avoided a late-game meltdown by turning back Petro Gazz, 25-19, 16-25, 25-18, 27-25, in the 2022 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference on Tuesday at the PhilSports Arena.
Alyssa Valdez's back-to-back kills in the extended fourth set wrapped up the Cool Smashers' second win in as many games. The Creamline star finished with a triple-double of 14 points, 22 digs and 15 receptions.
"Kapag mga crucial kasi ‘di na pwedeng magbigay ng points sa kabila so kung maka-puntos sila dapat sariling sikap nila yung magiging points nila," said Creamline head coach Sherwin Meneses.
The loss left Petro Gazz in a five-way tie with Akari, Cignal, Choco Mucho and PLDT at 1-1 (win-loss).
The Cool Smashers looked set to wrap up the match in the fourth set, 16-11, before MJ Phillips led a 7-1 run that tied the game at 17-all. Import Lindsey Vander-Weide's two consecutive kills even moved Petro Gazz on the verge of forcing a decider, 22-24.
But the Cool Smashers' Turkish import Yeliz Basa responded with her own kills to tie things up at 24. Vander-Weide kept the Angels hope alive once more to tally her 28th point, 24-25, before Valdez did the rest.
Cool Smashers to their second victory in a row, which was good for a share of No. 1 with the Chery Tiggo Crossovers.