By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Akari continued its rampage and added Chery Tiggo to its growing list of victims after pulling off with a hard-fought 25-11, 22-25, 29-27, 17-25, 15-7 victory in the Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
Annie Mitchem and Eli Soyud powered the Chargers with 17 points each including a combined 25 kills to lead the squad to a provisional lead in Pool B with a 2-0 record.
Akari capitalized on its aggressive serving, racking up 12 aces including five from Soyud and four from Ced Domingo to exploit Chery Tiggo’s shaky first-ball reception.
Domingo and Mitchem also anchored the defense, combining for seven of the team’s 11 blocks.
Though the Chargers remain unbeaten, their victories haven’t come easy. In their opening match over the weekend, Akari also went the distance, needing five sets to edge out defending champion Creamline.
But the tough grind is something they had prepared for.
“Actually, tine-train namin lagi five sets mga laro namin. At least, sa experience namin ngayon sa Creamline at Chery Tiggo, nakikita namin yung character namin, yung team growth at composure namin,” said Akari coach Tina Salak.
“Dito kasi sa mga sitwasyon na to nagkakaroon ng individual growth yung mga players,” she added.
Three other players also stepped up for the Chargers, with Domingo finishing with 16 points, and Fifi Sharma adding 10 points. Chenie Tagaod, who came off the bench in the second set and played in only three frames, contributed 11 points.
Ces Robles and import Yunieska Batista scored 20 and 17 points, respectively, but their efforts went down the drain as the Crossovers absorbed their second straight loss in as many outings.
