Capital1 formalizes PVL playoff spot after defeating Galeries

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Capital1 Solar Spikers officially barged into the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference playoff round after taking down the Galeries Highrisers, 12-25, 29-27, 25-19, 25-18, on Nov. 20, 2025, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Capital1 overcame a sluggish first-set performance, survived Galeries in a nail-biting second-set finish, and cruised past them in the final two sets to claim the seventh spot, setting up a quarterfinal clash against the league-leading ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles.

A frantic start, hounded by unforced errors and defensive miscommunications, prevented the Solar Spikers from reaching their dream start, suffering one of their worst set defeats in the Reinforced Conference by scoring only 12 points.

However, the Solar Spikers quickly shrugged off their first-set woes and woke up in the most crucial period of the second set when the match was dragged into a thrilling deuce.

After trailing 17-19, Capital1 banked on the clutch offensive display of Oleksandra Bytsenko, Bella Belen, and Sydney Niegos, which turned the tables around for a slim 26-25 advantage.

The Highrisers managed to hang around and extend the fiery second set, but Niegos saw enough and ended the long rally with a kill block after Galeries committed a costly bad return on the free ball situation.

From that sequence, Capital1 began to smell blood and steamrolled their way, pummeling Galeries in the last two sets en route to a come-from-behind four-set win.

Ukrainian reinforcement Bytsenko had to show off her full offensive arsenal against Galeries, top-scoring her squad with 35 big points built from 32 successful attacks.

Meanwhile, Belen, who is now back after an injury scare last game, chipped in 14 markers derived from 10 successful attacks and 15 excellent digs.

On the other hand, Galeries followed in the footsteps of the Nxled Chameleons as the only teams in the import-laced conference that failed to pick up a single win.

In her final game as a PVL import, Jelena Cvijovic delivered an 18-point performance for the Highrisers, alongside 15 excellent receptions.

The Solar Spikers will only have three days of rest before returning to action on Nov. 24, in the first scheduled quarterfinal match day against ZUS Coffee.