Lindsey Vander Weide scored five consecutive cross-court kills to lift Petro Gazz past winless but gritty Chery Tiggo, 25-15, 20-25, 25-23, 25-21, in the PVL Reinforced Conference on Saturday at Capital Arena in Ilagan City, Isabela.
After yielding to Creamline in four sets on Tuesday, the Angels continued to lean on the one-two punch of Vander Weide and Brooke Van Sickle, who scored 25 points each, while also making major adjustments with rookie Jules Tolentino running the plays and Myla Pablo playing as the starting opposite spiker. With the Crossovers threatening to force a decider with a 21-19 lead in the fourth set, Vander Weide caught fire, accounting for five in the Angels’ blistering 6-0 run to close the match in two hours and eight minutes.
‘I think the season is shorter than it was when I was here the first time. So, every game counts,’ said Vander Weide. ‘We’re only three games into season. But at the same time, that’s kind of a good portion in the season. So, I knew we couldn’t take another L on the road. And I think all of us kind of lit that fire underneath us.’
The returning American hitter, who led the team to a championship in 2022 as the Best Import and Finals MVP, had 19 kills, five aces, and a block to go with 11 excellent receptions.
Van Sickle, the reigning Season MVP, also had a tremendous floor defense with 20 digs and 15 excellent receptions to lead the Angels’ rise to a 2-1 record behind unbeaten Pool B leaders Akari and ZUS Coffee. Tolentino dished out 21 excellent sets, as Pablo and MJ Phillips had 10 points each after combining for seven of the team’s 13 kill blocks.
‘The whole team stepped up, came in, and contributed. So, overall, a great team win,’ said Petro Gazz coach Gary Van Sickle.
Petro Gazz, which rebounded after a four-set loss to rival Creamline on Tuesday, battles unbeaten Akari on Thursday at FilOil EcoOil Centre at 4 p.m. After splitting the first two sets, Petro Gazz squandered a 21-17 lead in the third, off two big blocks from MJ Phillips and Ranya Musa. But it committed three errors in Chery Tiggo’s four straight points to tie the frame.
Cess Robles and Yuni Batista kept the set tied at 23. But Van Sickle came to the rescue with a massive cross-court kill to reach set point, followed by a frame-clinching off-speed for the 2-1 match advantage.
Mylene Paat also had her moment in the fourth, drilling four straight points to gain a 19-16 advantage before Van Sickle and Vander Weide’s heroics for Petro Gazz.
Chery Tiggo remained winless in three games, as it continues to search for its first victory against Galeries Tower also on Thursday at 1:30 p.m.