ZUS Coffee dims Akari’s light for first PVL win

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles pulled off a massive come-from-behind victory to stun the Akari Power Chargers, 16-25, 25-18, 18-25, 25-23, 15-12, in the ongoing Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference on Feb. 12, 2026, at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.

With the thrilling five-set win, the Thunderbelles entered the PVL win column for the first time and successfully rebounded from a heartbreaking loss to the Galeries Tower Highrisers.

Trailing 1-2 entering the fourth set, ZUS Coffee picked up a much-needed offensive resurgence midway through the frame to force a deciding tiebreaker.

The fourth set was deadlocked at 21-all, but Cloanne Mondoñedo put ZUS Coffee ahead with a crafty 1-2 play, followed by a Riza Nogales solo block on Fifi Sharma for a two-point lead.

Akari threatened to extend the fourth set after pulling to within a point, but Ilongga veteran outside hitter Jovelyn Gonzaga delivered when ZUS Coffee needed her most, tallying the set-sealing point courtesy of an off-speed lefty drive.

ZUS Coffee sustained its momentum into the fifth and final set as the duo of Chinnie Arroyo and Thea Gagate sparked a 5-1 early lead, backstopped by Gonzaga’s clutch hits for an 8-4 cushion.

However, the Power Chargers kept their hopes alive with a 3-0 run, fueled by Ivy Lacsina’s back-to-back points, steering Akari back within contention with a one-point deficit.

Closing the curtains on Akari was Fiola Ceballos, who countered Lacsina’s personal scoring avalanche with a 3-0 run that ballooned ZUS Coffee’s lead back to four points, 11-7.

From there, the Thunderbelles never looked back, wrapping up the five-set action with a cross-court conversion from Arroyo.

The former National University (NU) Lady Bulldog spearheaded ZUS Coffee’s comeback win with 18 points built on 15 successful attacks, alongside 11 excellent digs and two service aces.

Mondoñedo chipped in 10 markers and 16 excellent sets, while the twin towers Gagate and Nogales added nine and eight points, respectively.

The Thunderbelles will look to sustain their momentum on Feb. 17, 2026, as they challenge Alyssa Valdez and the Creamline Cool Smashers in the final game of the scheduled doubleheader.

On the other hand, the Power Chargers aim to arrest their PVL skid and bag their first win of the All-Filipino Conference on Feb. 19, 2026, against the undefeated PLDT High Speed Hitters.