MANILA, Philippines – Cignal will try to secure their spot in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference qualifying round in a pivotal matchup on Tuesday at the Philsports Arena. With identical 7-3 win-loss records, the HD Spikers are now tied with Choco Mucho for third place. They are keen to take sole ownership of the No. 3 spot. As the competition goes on, Akari will be trying to establish consistency.

Cignal has the chance to formally claim the third seed even if Choco Mucho defeats Chery Tiggo in Iloilo City on February 22. The HD Spikers would guarantee a more advantageous encounter with the No. 10 squad in the following round by doing this. They currently have a 22–17 point edge over Choco Mucho, which could be a decisive factor in the final seeding.

Rankings are very important in the tournament structure because the top six teams will have a psychological advantage going into the elimination stage. The top team would play No. 12, the second team would play No. 11, and so on under the existing system. This arrangement emphasizes how crucial each qualifying round victory is.

An additional level of competitiveness will be offered by a recently implemented play-in format. Even if they lose their first games, teams can still compete for a position in the Last 8. In order to maintain their chances of winning the championship, the winners of these play-in games will go to the best-of-three quarterfinals.

Cignal will try to keep up its momentum as the rivalry heats up, while Akari wants to establish stability. Every set and every point will be vital in determining the path to the tournament’s next round as the stakes rise.

Despite losing two important players, Cignal is marginally favored after winning back-to-back matches against Capital1 and ZUS Coffee. Vanie Gandler, who keeps up his impressive performances, along with rookie phenom Ishie Lalongisip, Jacqueline Acuña, Roselyn Doria-Aquino, and ace setter Gel Cayuna, make up the dangerous HD Spikers.

Lalongisip underlined that the team’s goal heading into their most recent match was to win in order to advance to the preliminary round. Winning that game, he said, was essential to putting the squad in a good position for the competition’s next phases. Knowing that success in this stage will set the tone for subsequent performances, he clarified that their strategy was focused on perseverance and clever gameplay.

The team intended to resume training after the game in order to hone their abilities and improve their gameplay even further. Lalongisip expressed his trust in the team by pointing out that they had talented players who could perform well under duress. He said that the team’s preparation and commitment will be crucial to their success and that he was confident they could compete at a high level.

The focus on teamwork and training emphasized the value of ongoing development, and Lalongisip realized that their diligence and self-control would help them perform better overall in the competition. The team sought to maximize their potential and accomplish their competitive goals by concentrating on their skills and honing their tactics.

After losing to Choco Mucho in four sets, Akari (5-5) is keen to get back on track and is currently tied with Chery Tiggo at sixth place. Faith Nisperos, Ivy Lacsina, Eli Soyud, Fifi Sharma, Erika Raagas, Kamille Cal, and Camille Victoria are expected to put on exceptional performances, according to head coach Taka Minowa.

In the second game, Farm Fresh (4-6) takes on the struggling Capital1 Solar Spikers (1–9) in an attempt to finish their preliminary campaign at 5–6. The Foxies seem to be ahead of a group that includes Jolina dela Cruz, Aly Bertolano, Caitlin Viray, and Trisha Tubu.

Capital1, which is currently tied with Nxled (1–9) at the bottom, is trying to turn things around, but coach Roger Gorayeb will need to get good performances from Shola Alvarez, Des Clemente-De Guzman, Trisha Genesis, Jorelle Singh, Rovena Instrella, Patty Orendain, and Leila Cruz in order to boost confidence going into the next round of the tournament, which is being organized by Sports Vision with support from Watsons, Arena Plus, Fabriano Appliances, Milcu, iColor & Argan Beauty, Tapa King, Sport Radar, and Mikasa.