Ivy Lacsina looks to regain form to help Akari in must-win

Akari Chargers’ Ivy Lacsina during the PVL All-Filipino semifinals. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Ivy Lacsina was limited to an average of eight points as Akari split its first two semifinal games in the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference.

Akari couldn’t sustain its five-set win over Choco Mucho last Saturday, anchored by Eli Soyud’s career-high 34 points, as the Chargers got swept by the Creamline Cool Smashers, 18-25, 19-25, 19-25, on Tuesday at Philsports Arena.

Soyud was held to 11, while Lacsina struggled anew with another eight-point outing despite being a top-five scorer until the qualifying round with 178 points in 12 games.

READ: PVL semifinals: Creamline rebounds with sweep of Akari

“I think it was mostly about confidence in my hitting. That’s where I had a rough time. But I really focused on passing and defense, so that’s where I put my energy,” said the Chargers’ leading scorer in Filipino.

Lacsina admitted they Chargers were simply outplayed by Creamline, a team they have yet to beat in eight head-to-head games since joining the PVL three years ago.

“We can’t deny it, because it’s Creamline we’re talking about. They’re the number one team in PVL. It’s not that we were affected by the win, but honestly, almost everyone was a bit off today. Our opponents were also veterans, and I think we missed some in-game adjustments,” she said.

READ: PVL: ‘High-intensity’ practices help Ivy Lacsina, Akari avoid upset

Creamline and Petro Gazz are now tied in the round-robin with identical 1-1 records. The top two teams in the semifinals will advance to a best-of-three finals series next week.

Lacsina and the Chargers aim to bounce back against Petro Gazz in a must-win semifinal on Thursday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“We kept the talk calm to help the team relax first. After that, we will discuss things and get back to training. That’s all we do—just go back to the drawing board and keep improving,” Lacsina said.