Kobe Shinwa University. PVL Media Bureau
MANILA (UPDATED) — Kobe Shinwa University has secured the last final berth of the 2025 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Invitational after pulling off a reverse sweep against Chery Tiggo, 21-25, 17-25, 26-24, 25-22, 15-6, on Friday at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Nagisa Komatsuda made wonders for the Japanese side, firing a game-high 31 points built on 29 attacks and two blocks to lead the Kobe Shinwa comeback.
Yasuma Kokoro followed with 16 points, Arisu Ishikawa chipped in 11 markers, as Reira Miyazaki added 10 points.
Sakura Furuta orchestrated that impressive offense with 33 excellent sets, with the Japanese notching 73 attack points to outnumber the 55-point output of Chery Tiggo from spikes.
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Furuta added three service aces and five excellent digs to earn the Player of the Game nod.
"In the first and second sets, all the players were really nervous. We were not able to play our game straight away," said mentor Kiyokazu Yamamoto after the game.
In the decider, they rode on the momentum of winning the previous two sets, unleashing a 7-1 run to create a comfortable lead over Chery Tiggo. Cess Robles and Erica Deloria tried to keep the Crossovers alive, but Ishikawa and Komatsuda took over for the Japanese squad.
For their part, Chery Tiggo could not avert a collapse despite leading two sets to none, as the youthful Japan side proved resilient, climbing back even from a 16-21 deficit in Set 3 and took the driver's seat by then at 21-20.
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Kobe Shinwa erased a 23-21 Chery Tiggo lead and even reached the first set point, 24-23, after an unforced fault on the Crossovers side.
An attack error from Kobe Shinwa knotted things up, 24-all, but Komatsuda and Yasuma found the hits to give them their first set win, 26-24, and get things going.
"I told my players in the third set to change their mindsets," added Yamamoto.
It was an unfortunate fallout for the Crossovers as they got relegated to the bronze medal match. Ara Galang paced their crew with 19 points, Robles made her presence felt with 18 markers, and Jasmine Nabor also listed 32 excellent sets.
The Creamline-Chery Tiggo bronze match and PLDT-Kobe Shinwa Final are set for Sunday, August 31, at the same Cubao venue.