Need for high speed
Savi Davison and the PLDT High Speed Hitters wanted to get the qualifying match for a PVL All-Filipino Conference semifinal berth out of the way to avoid a much harder path to the next round.
But even the short route—which went through Farm Fresh—wasn’t as easy as they’d hoped.
“They’re so tactical and precise about things [because of] Coach Koji (Tsuzurabara),” Davison said.
The Foxies also had Trisha Tubu.
PLDT found a way, though, bucking Tubu’s scoring prowess to hammer out an 18-25, 25-23, 25-15, 25-22 victory over Farm Fresh on Thursday at Smart Araneta Coliseum to become the first team to book a semifinal spot.
“It’s just kind of in time who can adjust better and who can show up to that game and be more consistent,” Davison said.
Tubu finished with 25 points, but Davison adjusted her net defense on the Foxies hitter to help the High Speed Hitters achieve their goal.
“She’s hard to block, but it’s more of a mental effort of watching [her tendencies],” the Filipino Canadian PLDT star, who finished with a team-best 22 points, said.
Despite being the first to reach the semifinals, the 27-year-old Davison, a two-time PVL champion, could not help but marvel at how the league’s steady rise has been highlighted by teams like Farm Fresh already rising to the level of the top clubs.
“I think it just goes to show how much competition there is in the Philippines and how much it’s growing with the disbandment of two teams. A lot of good athletes didn’t have anywhere to go so they all kind of flooded into other teams and made them stronger,” she said.
“Alongside the good athletes, there are portals and stuff that you could study other teams now, so it’s by numbers, by receive, by serve, we study everything. It’s hard to go up on a team twice.”
PLDT, which topped the prelims with a 7-2 record, will face three other semifinalists starting April 11 at Mall of Asia Arena.
Farm Fresh still has another chance to make a franchise-first PVL semifinal appearance. The Foxies face survivor between Nxled and Galeries, who will collide on Saturday in a play-in match.
PLDT coach Rald Ricafort lauded Farm Fresh, which has started thriving under Japanese coach Tsuzurabara, last year’s All-Filipino champion mentor with Petro Gazz.
“We really gave them a lot of respect. They came in with momentum from their recent wins. We have a lot of respect for Farm Fresh and Coach Koji, so we couldn’t afford to be complacent,” said Ricafort.
“It’s tough because when you’re up against [Tubu], she has so many options. Our goal was just to contain her as much as we could, but she still scored well. What worked for us was limiting the other players, especially her fellow high scorers. If she’s going to produce a lot, at least we tried to contain the other wingers.”
Kianna Dy backstopped Davison with 19 points. Majoy Baron and Alleiah Malaluan chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.
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