Murillo leads Foxies to five-set victory over Highrisers

Farm Fresh edged out Galeries Tower in a thrilling five-set match, overcoming a 1-2 set deficit with a sweep of the last two sets for a 25-22, 35-37, 23-25, 25-20, 15-10 victory in the Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference at the Philsports Arena yesterday.

Yeny Murillo led the Foxies with a stellar 29-point performance, including eight points in the decisive fifth set. Her contributions extended beyond scoring as she finished with 16 excellent receptions and 10 excellent digs.

The Colombian outside hitter was instrumental in turning the tide for Farm Fresh, especially in a grueling second set that lasted 45 minutes.

“I’m very happy,” said coach Shota Sato through an interpreter. Murillo echoed his sentiment, emphasizing the significance of the win for the team’s morale.

“I thought my team needed this win because we need the motivation to keep pushing harder. The team has been my motivation,” she said.

Murillo’s explosive play was supported by strong performances from Caitlyn Viray and Trisha Tubu, who matched 18-point outputs, with Viray contributing five blocks.

Middle blocker Aprylle Tagsip had a standout game with 15 points and four blocks, while team captain Louie Romero delivered 27 excellent sets, and defensive specialist Janel Delerio recorded 25 excellent digs and 12 receptions.

In Set 5, Murillo scored five consecutive points in a crucial 6-0 run, turning a 5-6 deficit into a commanding 11-6 lead.

Roselle Baliton and Andrea Marzan actually steered the Highrisers back into the match behind a 4-1 counterattack, aided by a couple of Farm Fresh miscues, to cut the lead to two points.

But Murillo combined with rookie Maicah Larroza to seal the victory with clutch hits.

“This game showed good and bad aspects of the team, so we’ll adjust accordingly in training to get the win in our next game,” said Sato.

Viray added: “There were lapses at endgame, but we were able to finish it winning. But we still have so much work to do.”

Despite the win, Farm Fresh remains fifth in Pool A with a 1-2 record, while Galeries Tower suffered its third straight defeat.

The Highrisers, led by Thai import Chuewulim Sutadta with 19 points, 19 receptions, and 10 digs, fought valiantly but fell short, particularly in the pivotal set which they led, 23-21.

Graze Bombita and France Ronquillo each scored 17 points, and Roselle Baliton added 14 points for Galeries Tower.

Farm Fresh looks to build on this victory as they face Nxled on Saturday. Meanwhile, Galeries Tower will aim to bounce back against the Creamline Cool Smashers, also this weekend.

Games Tomorrow (Thursday)

1 p.m. – Petro Gazz vs Cignal

3 p.m. – Capital1 vs Choco Mucho

5 p.m. – ZUS Coffee vs Akari