Creamline, PLDT bow out of AVC contention after quarterfinal drubbing

MANILA, Philippines, April 25 ------ Only one Philippine team remains in contention in the 2025 AVC Women’s Champions League as the Creamline Cool Smashers and the PLDT High Speed Hitters came up short in their respective quarterfinal matchups at the PhilSports Arena.  

PLDT and Creamline suffered twin straight-set losses to Kazakhstan’s Zhetysu VC and Thailand’s Nakhon Ratchasima Qmin C, respectively, leaving the PVL All-Filipino Conference champion Petro Gazz Angels as the lone Filipino squad with a chance for a podium finish in the weeklong tournament. Petro Gazz takes on China’s BAIC Motor Volley Club on the second day of the quarterfinals at the same Pasig City venue on Friday, April 25, at 7 pm. For the second game in a row, no Creamline player breached the double-digit scoring territory as Nakhon Ratchasima rolled to a 25-15, 25-22, 25-16 sweep of the Cool Smashers to advance to the semifinals.  

Russian import Anastasiya Kudryashova led the Cool Smashers with 9 points, while Bernadeth Pons backstopped her with 8 points as American import Erica Staunton — who topscored for the Cool Smashers in their previous outing — was held to only 2 markers. Nakhon Ratchasima import Anyse Marlee Smith dropped a game-high 13 points, while Onuma Sittirak and Janthawisut Sasipapron chipped in 12 markers apiece. It was the second consecutive straight-set defeat of the Cool Smashers as they were also swept by Zhetysu in their pool play matchup last Monday, April 21.  

Matched up against a much-taller Zhetysu squad, the High Speed Hitters saw their campaign come to an end as the Kazakhs completed a 25-13, 25-22, 25-20 sweep to move on to the next round. It was a defensive masterclass for Zhetysu as it recorded 12 blocks in the one-sided affair, with 6 of those coming in the opening set alone. After leading by only a single point early in the first, 9-8, Zhetysu closed out the set on a furious 16-5 run to draw first blood. 

The High Speed Hitters showed more grit in the second frame and were only four points away from tying things up at 1-1 with a 21-20 advantage, before Zhetysu unloaded a fiery 5-1 blast late in the frame to take a commanding 2-0 lead. PLDT kept it close with Zhetysu anew in the third set, and with the High Speed Hitters only trailing by one, 20-19, the Kazakhs once again went on a 5-1 rally to put the Filipinos away for good. “Coming from the Thailand game, definitely the game today was much-harder,” said PLDT coach Rald Ricafort in Filipino after the High Speed Hitters pushed Nakhon Ratchasima to five sets in their previous contest. “Facing a team with an average height of 6 feet was simply too much for us, but it’s not an excuse.”  

Savi Davison paced the High Speed Hitters in the losing effort with 13 points and 9 excellent digs, Wilma Salas finished with 11 points, while team captain Kath Arado tallied 17 excellent digs and 6 excellent receptions. Zhetysu’s Tatyana Nikitina led all scorers with 19 points built on 14 attacks, 4 blocks, and an ace. After dispatching their Filipino opponents, Nakhon Ratchasima and Zhetysu will slug it out in the knockout semifinals on Saturday, April 26. 

Source: rappler.com