Just two days after winning their previous title, the Cool Smashers, as per usual, shut out the young guest team EST from Thailand and began their challenge to win the season.

Despite the championship celebrations still lingering, Creamline played their usual game on Friday, dominating EST Cora, a young guest team from Thailand, 25-13, 25-12, 25-15 in the PVL Invitational Conference as the Kool Smashers got their Grand Slam quest off to a strong start.

Less than 48 hours after defeating Akali in the Reinforced Conference Finals, the Kool Smashers continued their relentless offensive and, thanks to sustained stellar play from Kyle Negrito and the full force of his Creamline arsenal throughout the match, pulled the Thais out of a jam within the hour.

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“It feels like it’s not over yet,” said Negrito in Filipino, a talented setter who has seen more playing time following the efforts of the cerebral Zia de Guzman, who came to Japan last year.

“My goal from the beginning (of the season) was to win the invitational tournament, so I’ve got to really work hard.”

Meanwhile, Signal also earned their chance to qualify in bold fashion with a 25-16, 25-10, 25-18 win over Farm Fresh in the second game, with MJ Perez, the Reinforced Conference Guest Player of the Year, leading the HD Spikers’ attack.

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Perez led the team in the big win with 16 points, while Seth Molina and Jackie Acuna backed her up with 11 points each.

The Signal will next face EST on Sunday, which will serve as a precursor to the highly anticipated showdown between the HD Spikers and Cool Smashers the following day.

After a short rest on Tuesday, the HD Spikers will face the defending champion Kurashiki Ablaze on Wednesday, hoping to win all their games and qualify for the finals, which are scheduled to be held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on September 12.

A powerful message

The Cream Line, also the All-Philippine champions, are looking to win all three conferences this season, and the way the Cool Smashers took to their first game here (they had every excuse to take it easy) will undoubtedly send a strong message to the few other participants.

“We’re going to forget about the previous conference. It’s in the past now,” Reinforced Conference MVP Bernadeth Pons said in Filipino after scoring 10 points. “This is a new conference, so we need to stay focused and work harder.”

Michelle Gumabao led the Cool Smashers with 14 points, continuing her brilliance as she took over the role in the absence of three top scorers due to injuries and national team duty.

Coach Sherwin Meneses expressed satisfaction with his team’s play but stressed the need for continued improvement if they are to pursue that sweet sweep that eluded them in 2022.

“I’m happy with how we played,” Meneses said in Filipino, “but we have to maintain this level of play so we just have to get back to work, get back to training.”

“We are taking it one game at a time and just like the 2022 training conference, it won’t be an easy road ahead,” Meneses continued. “For now, we are focused on training and preparing for the challenge that Kurashiki will bring.”

Japan’s Kurakasi Ablaze are the defending champions here and Meneses will no doubt be eager to complete some unfinished business with his talented guests.