MANILA, Philippines — Jema Galanza stuffed the statistical sheet with a triple-double performance of 26 points, 11 excellent digs, and 18 excellent receptions, allowing Creamline to survive a 25-18, 24-26, 25-22, 23-25, 15-4, win over Farm Fresh on Thursday afternoon at the Smart Araneta in Cubao, Quezon City.
Creamline was led by veterans 6-foot-3 middle-blocker Jaja Santiago, who chipped in 17 points even as team captain Alyssa Valdez and three-time MVP Tots Carlos scored 12 points each.
For Galanza, having a five-set scare against Farm Fresh served as a wake-up call for the squad to not be complacent in the tournament.
“This is our third game, and we have a huge chance of making it to the finals, so we’re here; we shouldn’t waste the opportunity. This is one of the moments that we don’t want to waste; we had a fair share of moments where we are almost there, but we failed,” she told the media during the post-game presser.
Creamline’s playmaker Kyle Negrito made 22 excellent sets in the match, while libero Kyle Atienza made 15 excellent digs.
On the other hand, Farm Fresh was led by Ces Molina’s fiery 27-point output, but it was not enough to conquer the 11-time champion squad.
Trisha Tubu and Royse Tubino both added 19 markers each for Farm Fresh, but the team ran out of gas in the deciding frame as they managed to only score four points.
Creamline (3-0) will next face Thailand’s EST Cola (1-1), while Farm Fresh (1-2) needs to conquer PLDT High Speed Hitters (1-1) to stay in the finals race.
