Foton secures back-to-back PSL Grand Prix titles after surviving Petron

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Foton Tornadoes emerged victorious for the second straight year as they rout the Petron Blaze Spikers, 25-20, 25-20, 22-25, 25-17 to claim the 2016 Philippine Super Liga Grand Prix Championship on Saturday, December 10 at the PhilSports Multi-Purpose Arena.

Ariel Usher, who was crowned the second best outside spiker of the tournament, led the way for Foton with 19 points and 16 excellent spikes. Lindsay Stalzer added 14 markers, while Jaja Santiago put up 10 points.

The NU Lady Bulldogs standout was later on awarded with the Grand Prix Most Valuable Player trophy.

The two-time champs capitalized on their opponent’s twelve unforced errors in the opening set, as Petron lost momentum upon losing open spiker Mina Aganon in their lineup.

Aganon limped her way back to the Blaze Spikers’ bench after suffering a bad landing late in the first, and failed to come back to the court afterwards.

The Foton Tornadoes, who played only their third Grand Prix conference, survived a third set rally from Petron as they scored more open attacks and aces in the fourth.

Best outside spiker Stephanie Niemer finished with a game-high 31 markers for Petron.

Moro Branislav’s squad ended the season with a single loss as Foton captured their second title in franchise history.

Scores:

Foton: Usher 19, Stalzer 14, Santiago 10, Santiago-Manabat 8, Ortiz 5, Dimaculangan 3

Petron: Niemer 31, Warner 10, Pontillas 7, Rosario 5, Hingpit 2, Molina 2, Yongco 1. – Rappler.com