The Criss Cross King Crunchers complete an elimination round sweep on the way to the 2025 Spikers' Turf Invitational Conference semifinals.
Criss Cross capped its blistering march through the Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference, barging into the semifinals with an immaculate record after a 21-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-20 comeback win over Alpha Insurance on Sunday at the Paco Arena.
The King Crunchers bucked a slow start and the absence of Alas Pilipinas stars Marck Espejo, Kim Malabunga and Eco Adajar – who are currently in Taiwan preparing for the 33rd Southeast Asian Games – to complete a 7-0 sweep of the preliminaries.
Meanwhile, Alpha Insurance looked poised to clinch its first-ever semis berth in the tournament organized by Sports Vision and backed by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things, and Arena Plus after a strong start.
But the Protectors couldn’t withstand the King Crunchers’ fiery comeback and ultimately finished fifth with a 3–4 record.
The Protectors’ loss thus opened the door for Savouge Aesthetics (4-3) and UST–Gameville (4-2) to secure spots in the round-robin semis featuring two foreign guest squads.
Desperate for a win to secure a top-four spot, the Protectors came out firing, dominating the opening set and carrying their momentum into the second, only to come up short against a relentless Criss Cross squad.
From there on, the King Crunchers took control, steadily pulling away in the third and fourth sets to secure the win after almost two hours of action and spike their dominant run in the elims.
Jude Garcia took control on offense, uncorking 24 points on 18 attacks, two aces, and two kill blocks and adding eight excellent digs, while Noel Kampton added 16 points on 13 attacks and three kill blocks.
“Sobrang saya kasi nakuha namin ‘yung panalo today,” said the three-time league MVP Garcia. “‘Di mo rin kasi talaga masabi ‘yung game kanina kasi gustong lumaban talaga ng Alpha pero talagang napakita ng team kung paano kami kumapit.”
“Nag-compose lang kami talaga tapos kung anong goal namin this season, talagang gusto naming makamit,” he added.
Poy Colinares added eight markers, while Nico Almendras seized his limited opportunity with seven points to go along with 10 excellent receptions. Rex Intal also contributed six points.
Adrian Villados, meanwhile, showcased different facets of his game with 24 excellent sets to go along with five points on four blocks and one attack and six excellent digs for Criss Cross, which will head to the semis with all the confidence and momentum needed into the cutthroat phase featuring two foreign guest squads.
Barbie San Andres and Rocky Motol finished with 14 points apiece for Alpha Insurance, while Vince Himzon and JJ Javelona chipped in 10 markers each.
Games are aired live on One Sports and One Sports+, with video-on-demand access available via the Pilipinas Live app. Matches are also streamed on spikersturf.ph.