MANILA – Petron Blaze Spikers stayed unbeaten in the 2019 Philippine Superliga Grand Prix. It demolished Sta. Lucia Lady Realtors, 25-8, 25-8, 25-18, at the San Juan Arena.
Stephanie Niemer poured 24 points off 17 kills, five aces and two blocks on Thursday, while Katherine Bell added 14 kills for 17 points.
The defending champions improved to a 4-0 win-loss slate.
Rhea Dimaculangan also made her contribution with 27 excellent sets on top of three markers. Libero Dennese Lazaro protected the floor with 11 digs and six excellent receptions.
“We’ve been seeing the improvement of the team but we can never be content with what we have right now,” said Blaze Spikers head coach Ceseal delos Santos. “We have to maintain this kind of performance or even level it up for us to reach our goal.”
After holding the Lady Realtors to just eight points both in the first two sets, the Blaze Spikers went down 3-7 in the third frame before getting their acts together to take a 10-9 lead.
The Blaze Spikers pulled away with a 19-15 breather capped by Niemer’s hit, but the Lady Realtors rallied to within 20-18 before Niemer, Bell and Bernadeth Pons delivered three of the last five points for the Blaze Spikers.
Reinforcements Casey Schoenlein and Molly Lohman emerged with eight and six points, respectively, for the Lady Realtors, which dropped to 1-4 win-loss record.
F2 Logistics Cargo Movers also joined the Blaze Spikers on top after scoring a 25-20, 25-20, 26-24 sweep on Foton Tornadoes. Lindsay Stalzer had double-double 18 points and 14 excellent receptions for the Cargo Movers./PN
