Bryan James Jaleco and the Philippine Air Force Airmen raised the curtains of the 2024 Spikers’ Turf Open Conference on a positive note, dispatching league newcomers Richmarc Sports 3B Elite Spikers.
Bryan James Jaleco and the Philippine Air Force Airmen played spoiler to the Spikers’ Turf debut of Richmarc Sports 3B Elite Spikers with a four-set 22-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25–23 win to raise the curtains of the Open Conference at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum on Wednesday.
Jaleco delivered the goods with 21 points built on 18 attacks, two aces, and a block, on top of six digs, to give the Airmen a winning start.
Pol Salvador and Ahmad Abdul also made their presence felt with 14 markers apiece, while Louis Lumanlan uncorked four aces to finish with nine points.
Herald Domingo anchored above the net, collecting six of Air Force’s nine blocks to wind up with seven markers.
Ronchette Lee Villegas fanned out 20 excellent sets, as Marco Maclang patrolled the floor with 22 receptions and 12 digs.
“Siyempre nakakatuwa kasi ‘yung mga tinuturo namin ay nag-click sa game namin ngayon. Even though young players ‘yung nasa lineup namin ngayon, at least nag-perform sila ng napakaganda,” Air Force head coach Jeffrey Malabanan said.
The Airmen got off to a shaky start as the Elite Spikers snatched an early buffer.
Behind Jaleco, Salvador and Abdul, Air Force seized control in the succeeding frames to seal the deal.
“‘Yung willingness na manalo ng young players, ayun ‘yung nagdala sa amin. Lagi lang naman nila sinusunod ‘yung sistema nga sa loob. Once na ginagawa nila ‘yun, nagco-continue ‘yung pag-earn namin ng points. Siyempre minsan nagkakagulo, pero bumabalik naman doon sa composure ‘yung mga bata. So nagagawa nila ‘yung mga ine-expect namin sa kanila,” Malabanan shared.
Kurl Rosete poured in 19 points for Richmarc Sports 3B that went for naught.
Gideon James Guadalupe managed 14 markers, while Kernel Ipulan scored 10 in the losing cause.
Air Force guns for 2-0 when it collides with Philippine Navy, while Richmarc Sports 3B seeks to earn its breakthrough win when it faces defending champion Cignal.
Both matches will be held on March 17, Sunday, at the same venue.