Choco Mucho edges ZUS Coffee to advance in PVL Play-Ins

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Choco Mucho Flying Titans pulled through in the clutch and nipped the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles, 21-25, 25-22, 13-25, 25-11, 15-11, to march to the next stage of the ongoing Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference play-in round on March 24, 2026, at the Playtime Filoil Centre.

With the much-needed win, the Flying Titans avoided an early exit in the tournament, arranging another play-in duel with the Akari Chargers scheduled for March 28, 2026.

Despite shaky performances in the opener and the third set, Choco Mucho forced the decider with a clinical fourth-set outing, limiting the Thunderbelles to just 11 points, their lowest-scoring frame of the tournament.

It was all business for the Flying Titans at the start of the fifth set after they raced to an 11-5 advantage, courtesy of Sisi Rondina and Eya Laure’s combined seven-point effort and Maddie Madayag’s defensive lift.

However, ZUS Coffee managed to trim its deficit after banking on Riza Nogales’ offensive resurgence, inching to within three points.

Just when ZUS Coffee thought it could lean on Nogales until the final whistle, Choco Mucho head coach Dante Alinsunurin made a crucial adjustment by fielding Madayag back in for defensive purposes.

As soon as Madayag checked back in, Nogales’ offensive production slowed and she was held scoreless, allowing the Flying Titans to cap the five-set win with a game-winning 5-1 closing run.

Rondina was a force to be reckoned with after spearheading Choco Mucho with 27 points on 26 successful attacks, alongside 15 excellent receptions and 10 excellent digs.

Madayag also stepped up when the Flying Titans needed her most, delivering 19 markers built on 14 successful attacks, while Eya Laure chipped in 13 points.

In the other play-in bracket, the Galeries Tower Highrisers sent Bella Belen and the Capital1 Solar Spikers packing with a stunning 3-0 sweep, 25-16, 25-20, 30-28, to set up the next-round encounter with the Nxled Chameleons.