Chery Tiggo disconnects Cignal to punch PVL On Tour finals ticket

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Chery Tiggo Crossovers proved to be too much for the Cignal HD Spikers, 25-17, 16-25, 25-21, 25-23, and marched to the championship round of the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) On Tour tournament on Aug. 12, 2025, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

With the huge win, the Crossovers ended a four-year finals trip drought after their 2021 PVL Open Conference title during the pandemic in Ilocos Norte.

Chery Tiggo banked on a balanced offensive attack, led by the duo of Princess Robles and Ara Galang, who took over in the final two sets.

Robles set the tone for the Crossovers after exploding early in the opening set with efficient, clever attacks that kept finding the open gaps in Cignal’s floor coverage.

Unlike their fireworks-spiking display in their last win over the NXLED Chameleons, Chery Tiggo played a more technical approach and moved away from power hitting.

Instead, the Crossovers haunted Cignal with a barrage of off-speed hits that neutralized their middle blocking, targeting the corners and forcing the HD Spikers to reset defensively.

It didn’t take long for Cignal to shrug off their slow start in the following set after Erika Santos woke up and carried the team’s offense.

From an error-plagued opener, Cignal found a new lease on life through Santos’ resurgence, backstopped by the contribution of Ishie Lalongisip midway through the set.

Just when Cignal thought they had figured out Chery Tiggo’s adjustments, the veteran-laden squad punched back in the third, courtesy of Imee Hernandez’s defensive presence in the middle.

Renee Peñafiel also delivered key hits that helped the Crossovers retake the driver’s seat and move a set away from returning to the grand finals.

Unfortunately for Cignal, they ran out of gas in the fourth and could only watch Ara Galang score the game-winning spike to cap her 15-point outing.

Robles matched Galang’s offensive numbers but wrapped up the win with an all-around effort of 11 excellent digs and 11 excellent receptions.

Meanwhile, Hernandez chipped in 12 markers and two blocks, while Peñafiel added 10 points from eight successful attacks.

Chery Tiggo will square off against the PLDT High Speed Hitters in the finale on Aug. 17, 2025, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.