Mini Game
Daily Fantasy: 'YUN OH! NANDITO NA ANG PBA
The Petro Gazz Angels held steady in the endgame against the Creamline Cool Smashers to take Game 1 of the 2024–25 PVL All-Filipino Conference Finals, 25-17, 25-20, 18-25, 20-25, 15-10, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Petro Gazz started like a house on fire, breezing by the first set and getting the second as well behind some sensational kills and a stout defense. But Creamline wasn’t rolling over just like that, returning the favor with dominant wins in the third and fourth sets to send Game 1 to a fifth set decider.
It was in that final set that MJ Phillips took over, firing the set’s first three points and scoring six of the Angels’ total output. Phillips finished with 16 and was one of Petro Gazz’s key cogs in this huge Game 1 win. Brooke Van Sickle led the charge for the Angels with a game-high 24 markers, while Jonah Sabete added 16 as well. Myla Pablo was a factor again, finishing with 12 points and flashing an all-around game.
“I have no words,” said Van Sickle, after Petro Gazz’s emotional Game 1 win. “It was extremely stressful, a very tough battle, but I’m proud of my team.”
Bernadeth Pons paced the Cool Smashers with 16, followed by 13 from Pangs Panaga. Bea de Leon chipped in 11, Jema Galanza added 10, and Michele Gumabao had 9.
Petro Gazz Nears Breakthrough Title, but Creamline Has Been Here Before
With the win, Petro Gazz is now just a victory away from clinching the franchise’s first-ever All-Filipino title—the exact same scenario the Angels were in after winning Game 1 of the 2023 PVL All-Filipino Conference Finals. Their opponents then were—surprise, surprise!—these same Cool Smashers.
So, while the Angels are on the verge of a historic title, they are also up against a team that has been in this situation before. And as history shows, Creamline won the next two games in that series to win another championship—something the Cool Smashers have 10 of already.
Petro Gazz saw that resilience firsthand again in Game 1 when Creamline bounced back after getting dominated in the first two sets and came close to pulling out what would’ve been a deflating reverse sweep for the Angels. The locked-in Van Sickle apparently knows this all too well now.
“Creamline is a team that never gives up. They have that grit. They’re mentally tough,” she said as she lauded Rem Palma’s calming leadership amidst Creamline’s onslaught. “As team captain, she really did a great job. She talked to us, calmed us down because we kind of got ahead of ourselves after winning the first two sets. We started rushing things, not playing our game. We got tight. But she kept reminding us to stay patient—and yeah, we prevailed.”
Put simply, the Angels can’t get ahead of themselves against a team that has been in this one-game hole before in the Finals and prevailed just the same.
2024–25 PVL All-Filipino Conference: The Finals Continue
The 2024–25 PVL All-Filipino Conference Finals continue with Game 2 on Thursday, also at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. It will follow the curtain-raiser that will feature the Akari Chargers looking to bag third place against the Choco Mucho Titans after their reverse sweep win on Tuesday.
Game 2 of the PVL Finals is set at 6:30 p.m., with Petro Gazz looking to close out the show and Creamline seeking to send it to a Game 3 decider.
