Balanced Chameleons shake off opening loss, sweep depleted Capital1

Tiger Scores365

Nxled wasted little time putting its opening-day defeat behind it.

With a balanced attack and a dominant performance at the net, the Chameleons swept a depleted Capital1 squad, 25-17, 25-23, 25-18, on Saturday at the Chavit Coliseum to notch their first victory in the 2026 PVL On Tour Showdown.

Even without reigning league MVP Brooke Van Sickle, Nxled showcased its depth to improve to 1-1, while Capital1—playing without national team stars Bella Belen, Erika Santos, and Vanie Gandler—opened its campaign with a loss.

The Chameleons cruised through the opening set before facing a determined challenge from the Solar Spikers in the next two frames.

Capital1 stayed within striking distance, but Nxled consistently found answers whenever the match tightened.

The decisive stretch came in the third set when Jonah Escamillan broke an 18-all deadlock by firing three consecutive attacks to spark a 3-0 run.

Myla Pablo and MJ Phillips followed with clutch points in long rallies, energizing the Vigan crowd before Pablo stuffed Ysa Jimenez at the net to bring up match point. EJ Laure punctuated the victory with a service ace.

Pablo starred with 17 points, including 13 attacks and four blocks, to claim Player of the Game honors.

"We just enjoyed the game and followed the instructions of our coaches on what we needed to do inside the court. We were also happy because we were able to execute everything we worked on in training over the past few days," Pablo said.

"We played without putting pressure on ourselves, and our communication was a big factor. Everyone stayed connected and trusted each other instead of trying to do everything individually."

Escamillan chipped in 13 points, while Phillips added seven. Jovelyn Fernandez scored six, Lyann De Guzman had five, and Laure and Chiara Permentilla contributed four apiece.

Capital1 struggled to generate consistent offense, with Shaya Adorador leading the team with six points. Trisha Genesis, Sydney Niegos, and Jimenez each finished with five.

Nxled controlled the match in nearly every statistical category, outscoring Capital1 in attacks (45-34), blocks (10-3), and service aces (5-1), while turning the Solar Spikers' miscues into 16 points.

Still, Capital1 found positives in the professional debuts of rookies Detdet Pepito and Khy Cepada, as Pepito steadied the back row with her floor defense and Cepada scored four points in her first PVL appearance.