Cignal, PLDT battle Akari and ZUS Coffee in quarterfinals

Games on Thursday
(PhilSports Arena)
4 p.m. – Cignal vs Akari
6:30 p.m. – PLDT vs ZUS Coffee

SISTER teams PLDT and Cignal are dreaming of winning its breakthrough Premier Volleyball League (PVL) championship.

And what better way to achieve it than doing it at the expense of each other.

The road there starts with the High Speed Hitters and the HD Spikers battling the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles and the Akari Charger, respectively, on Thursday in the PVL on Tour quarterfinals at the PhilSports Arena.

A win by PLDT over ZUS at 6:30 p.m. and Cignal over Akari at 4 p.m. would catapult the Manny V. Pangilinan-owned franchises straight to knockout semis set on Tuesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

By chance, they would face different foes there so a win by both in the semis would forge what had never happened before in their whole PVL lives — a potential title showdown.

But making it that far is easier said than done as roadblocks could potentially alter its course.

The biggest stumbling block could be ZUS, which has continuously sent shockwaves down the league including a shock, come-from-behind 22-25, 20-25, 25-16, 25-17, 5-10 win over Choco Mucho in last Tuesday’s knockout round at the same Pasig venue.

Other big fishes the giant-slaying Thunderbelles have caught were the Chery Tiggo Crossovers and the Creamline Cool Smashers — the league’s most titled club — in the pool phase.

Meanwhile, Cignal bested Akari in their pool duel, 25-23, 25-14, 25-23, last June 22 at the Chavit Coliseum in Ilocos Sur. — Joey Villar