MJ Perez came through in the clutch as Cignal fended off Galeries Tower in the PVL Reinforced Conference on Thursday, Aug. 15.
MJ Perez fired 34 points as Cignal outlasted Galeries Tower, 23-25, 25-22, 26-28, 25-14, 15-11, to secure solo second in the 2024 PVL All-Filipino Conference at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday, August 15.
Perez teamed up with Ria Meneses in a pivotal 8-3 tear in the fifth set that allowed the HD Spikers to build a six-point separation then came through with a backrow attack to stifle a late charge by the High Risers and shove her squad to match point.
Gel Cayuna then wrapped it up with an ace to notch their sixth win against a single loss just behind pacesetting Akari (7-0).
PLDT, which earlier joined Cignal at second, slid to third.
Trailing 1-2 sets down heading into the fourth set, the HD Spikers seemingly found their footing, dominating the Highrisers whom they limited to just 14 points to force a decider.
A tight battle ensued in the early parts of the final frame before Cignal distanced themselves from a 4-4 standoff behind Meneses’ exploits at the net and Perez's off-the-block and down-the-line hits for a comfortable 13-7 cushion.
But Bombita rallied the Highrisers with her attacks even as Dimdim Pacres checked back in the game to deliver an off-the-block hit for Galeries Tower to inch behind at 9-13.
Seemingly fired up as Roselyn Doria erred on her spike to further push them closer, the Highrisers leaned on Marzan to guard the net with a denial against Hernandez to threaten within just two, 11-13.
But Perez was there to counter for Cignal.
The Venezuelan import finished with a game-high 34 points on 31 attacks and three blocks.
Gel Cayuna orchestrated the HD Spikers' offense with 31 excellent sets to go along with eight points, while Ces Molina fired 19 points in the victory.
Chuewulim Sutadta paced the Galeries Tower with 19 points, 20 excellent receptions, and 20 excellent digs in the loss which kept the team winless.