As Zus marches to quarterfinals. NxLed starts club’s next phase
Rach Jorvina doesn’t view the Nxled Chameleons’ final match in the ongoing PVL All-Filipino Conference as the end of their campaign.
“This isn’t the end of the conference but the start of the next one,” said Jorvina, whose 20 excellent digs provided the defensive backbone in the Chameleons’ dominant 25-17, 25-17, 25-18 victory over the short-handed Farm Fresh Foxies on Wednesday night.
Sharp and consistent from start to finish, the Chameleons hinted at a promising future in a match where EJ Laure received strong support from Chiara Permentilla and Lycha Ebon.
Under the guidance of new Italian coach Ettore Guidetti, Nxled secured a win in a faceoff where only pride was at stake. The Chameleons had missed the quarterfinals after ending the short, three-team play-in phase with a 1-1 (win-loss) record alongside the Chery Tiggo Crossovers. Meanwhile, the Foxies, missing key players Jolina Dela Cruz, Lorene Toring, Janel Delerio, Trisha Tubu, and Maicah Larroza, finished winless in two games.
“This will build our confidence to keep up with other teams. It’s just a matter of time,” Jorvina added.
After dropping a crucial match against Chery Tiggo on Tuesday, the Foxies struggled to counter the Chameleons’ firepower. Veteran Rachel Daquis fought valiantly alongside Alyssa Bertolano and Aprylle Tagsip, but they were ultimately overwhelmed by Nxled’s determination to end their campaign on a high note.
“We don’t want to dwell on past losses. We have to move on so we can execute better next conference,” said Laure.
Nxled remained steady in the first two sets, only allowing the Foxies a brief rally to tie the third set at 11. Laure then took over, delivering powerful attacks from multiple angles. By the time Lucille Almonte and Krich Macaslang joined the charge, the Chameleons had surged ahead, 23-15.
Agatha Mangulabnan sealed the match with her only point of the game—an ace that ended the Foxies’ struggles at match point.
“For us, there’s nowhere to go but up. This conference taught us how to turn losses into lessons that fuel our future wins,” Permentilla said after the Chameleons added their play-in record to a 1-10 run in the preliminary round.
