Chery Tiggo EV reinforcement Yuni Batista in action. PVL Media Bureau
MANILA — Yuni Batista exploded for 41 points — eight in the fifth set — to carry Chery Tiggo EV past Capital1, 27-25, 23-25, 25-12, 22-25, 15-13, in the 2025 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference on Tuesday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.
The Cuban spiker powered the Crossovers' game-defining 6-0 run in the fifth set, as well the match-clinching kill to put away the Bella Belen-led squad.
"Well, for me, I guess, going point by point, slowly, with patience, step by step. And this was the result, and I'm so happy for that," said the Chery Tiggo EV import during the postgame press conference.
The Crossovers erased a narrow 8-6 Capital1 lead in the fifth and installed a 12-8 cushion for themselves, anchored on Batista kills and multiple faults from the Solar Spikers. Her counterpart, Sasha Bytsenko, tried to keep the other side alive, as she unleashed back-to-back hits that put Capital1 within two, 13-11.
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Batista made up for an attack that went out, 14-13, and sealed the game with a kill of her own to gift the Crossovers just their second win.
"You know, this win, sobrang sarap sa pakiramdam. Kasi you can see naman the effort of everyone, from the coaching staff to the players. Like, everyone really contributed to this win," added libero Jen Nierva, who had 24 excellent digs and 17 excellent receptions to hold the fort on the other side.
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The only other Crossover in twin-digit scoring was Ara Galang, who had 11 points.
Meanwhile, Capital1's surge came to a halt, although Bytsenko tried to continue that rise with a team-high 34 points and nine excellent receptions.
Belen continued to live up to the hype as number one overall pick of the 2025 PVL Draft with a conference-high 22 points and nine excellent digs, while libero Roma Mae Doromal listed 17 excellent digs and 19 excellent receptions in the two-hour, 39-minute marathon.