Creamline, Choco Mucho clash in opener

MANILA, Philippines — The Premier Volleyball League closes out the season with a couple of firsts – the first time it will hold two All-Filipino Conferences in a year and the first opening playdate where it will pit two sister teams against each other.

The upcoming conference which will kick off on Oct. 15 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum will feature a record 12-team cast, surpassing the 11-local squad field that saw action in the last Invitational Conference won by guest team Kurashiki of Japan, which beat Creamline in a thriller of a finale last July.

Creamline, which rallied from a set down and swept Petro Gazz in the next two to nail its fourth All-Filipino championship last March, braces for a spirited duel with Choco Mucho in the 7 p.m. nightcap of an explosive triple-bill.

Foiled in their bid for women’s volley’s version of a grand slam for the second straight year, the Cool Smashers are keen on winning another All-Filipino jewel.