Chery Tiggo Crossovers’ Aby Maraño against Nxled’s Kamille Cal in the PVL All-Filipino Conference. –PVL PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Aby Maraño believes the Chery Tiggo Crossovers’ stronger on-and-off chemistry has led to their three-game winning streak in the 2024 PVL All-Filipino Conference.
After two consecutive losses in their first four games, the Crossovers are slowly getting their groove, winning three consecutive games including big wins over the defending champions Creamline Cool Smashers and Petro Gazz Angels.
Maraño said their stronger bond and better on-court communication have lit the fire under Chery Tiggo to keep its semifinal hopes on track with a 5-2 record, tied with Petro Gazz at No.4 behind top seed Creamline (6-1) and joint second placers Choco Mucho and PLDT, who both have 5-1 slates.
READ: PVL: Chery Tiggo continues hot streak with win over Nxled
“We’re really using our chemistry that we have worked on to our favor. We didn’t see eye to eye in the beginning, but now we know what each other is saying,” said Maraño after scoring nine points in their 23-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-20 win over Nxled on Tuesday at Philsports Arena.
FILE–Chery Tiggo Crossovers in the PVL All-Filipino Conference. – PVL PHOTO
“We need to reach the point that just one look from my teammate and I would know what she’s telling me. So we’re really working hard on that area. For me, it’s only my second month playing with Chery Tiggo and they have a different system from where I used to play.
In their past games, the Chery Tiggo team captain saw her teammates’ eagerness to fight and dedication to help each other inside the court.
“I can see how responsive the team is. The coaches really want us to support each other. And you can see the communication and support are starting to come out and I think that’s what is making us effective as a unit,” Maraño said.
READ: PVL: Ara Galang, Aby Maraño bring veteran smarts to Chery Tiggo
The veteran middle blocker has been vaunting her on-court swag and signature running attacks in their recent victories, thanks to their fit-again setter Alina Bicar and other playmakers Joyme Cagande and Jasmine Nabor.
“They’re really giving me the slide attacks because that has been my forte mty entire career. We work on that every single training. We struggled with it at first because it’s not easy to practice that in a short period of time,” Maraño said.
“I’m grateful that they didn’t give up despite the pressure. [My forte] is starting to come out again thanks to Alina, Joyme and Jasmine who have been helping me get my confidence back.”
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Chery Tiggo’s next game is on April 11 against Cignal. But Maraño and the Crossovers won’t relax during the long break, vowing to work harder and make the most of it to get even better.