PGJC-Navy picked up one for the road as the Sealions beat VNS for their lone win in the 2025 Spikers' Turf Invitational Conference.
PGJC-Navy saved its best for last, closing out a rough Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference campaign with a hard-earned 21-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 victory at the Paco Arena in Manila on Sunday.
Team captain Greg Dolor refused to let the Sealions exit winless, exploding for 24 points built on 21 attacks, two blocks and an ace, and powering PGJC-Navy to its lone victory, finishing with a 1-6 record at the bottom of the eight-team field.
“‘Yung effort talaga namin ngayon, must-win talaga. Gusto talaga naming manalo kasi ayaw din naming ma-sweep kami ng wala kaming panalo, so thankful ako kasi lahat naman nag-perform,” said the Navy veteran.
Dolor was steady throughout the two-hour, five-minute duel, converting 52.4 percent of his attack attempts while stepping up in the absence of Joeven Dela Vega, who sat out the non-bearing match.
The Sealions also pounced on VNS’ 29 errors, displaying the composure and maturity that had eluded them for most of the tournament – a key factor behind their string of early setbacks.
Head coach George Pascua, however, pointed to the team’s limited preparation as a major reason behind their struggles. He believes they could have made significant adjustments had the conference been longer.
“Kinapos lang kasi ‘yung preparation namin, too short talaga. Kaya ‘yung adjustments medyo hirap. Pero kung may second round, siguro makaka-adapt,” said Pascua.
Marc Paulino provided strong support with 17 points, 14 excellent receptions and eight excellent digs, while Marvin Hairami tallied 19 excellent sets in the Sealions’ only win of the tournament organized by Sports Vision and backed by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things and Arena Plus.
Peter Quiel chipped in nine points, and libero Jack Kalingking anchored the floor defense with 11 excellent receptions and four excellent digs as PGJC-Navy recovered from a first-set loss to sweep the next three.
Meanwhile, VNS also ended with a 1-6 slate but secured seventh place via superior set ratio.
Noy Pedrosa led the Griffins with 15 points – all but one coming from attacks – while Kimmy Liray added 14 markers and finished with 14 excellent receptions.