Kobe Shinwa topples Creamline, first time Cool Smashers miss finals in consecutive seasons

Bouncing back from a tough loss to PLDT on Monday, Kobe Shinwa University turned frustration into fuel, outlasting Creamline in four grueling sets, 27-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-21, on Tuesday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.

Head coach Kiyokazu Yamamoto reminded his youthful squad — with an average age of just 19 — that they came to the Philippines to test themselves against the country’s best.

Against PLDT, the Japanese guest team pushed hard but faltered in the end, absorbing close defeats, 20-25, 22-25, 23-25. That setback, Yamamoto said, became a moment of reflection for his players to learn how to finish stronger.

“All the sets were close against PLDT, but we couldn’t finish them. Today, I reminded my players that we are challengers, and that mindset helped them perform well,” said the longtime KSU mentor. “All the sets were close again today, but this time, we were able to take them.”

Kobe Shinwa leaned on a balanced, relentless offense that overwhelmed the Cool Smashers, piling up 69 attack points to Creamline’s 56. 

Kokoro Yasuma spearheaded the charge with 23 points built on 21 attacks and two aces, while also anchoring the defense with 12 excellent receptions. Arisu Ishikawa and Nagisa Komatsuda chipped in 16 points apiece, Reira Miyazaki added 11, and Yuia Yamano scored nine.

“I already knew that Creamline likes to play fast and run a lot of combinations, so that’s what we focused on in our preparation,” Yamamoto added.

FOUR-SET STUNNER!

Guest team Kobe Shinwa University pulled off an incredible victory over the defending champion Creamline Cool Smashers in the 2025 PVL Invitational.

For more PVL stories, visit https://t.co/JGLB5Z1F9I#PVL2025 #PVLInvitationalhttps://t.co/zuyeQIfzmN

— One Sports (@OneSportsPHL) August 26, 2025

The loss dealt a historic blow to Creamline, which will miss the PVL Finals for the second straight conference — a first in the franchise’s decorated history. 

With three defeats in the Invitational, the Cool Smashers are now out of contention for a top-two finish as both Chery Tiggo and Kobe Shinwa can finish with no more than two losses.

The last time Creamline failed to reach consecutive finals was back in the league’s inaugural 2017 season, when Balipure and Pocari Sweat alternated in the championship series.

 Since then, the Cool Smashers have established themselves as the PVL’s benchmark program, claiming multiple titles and never leaving the podium.

Even with the crown out of reach, Creamline still has its record-setting podium streak to defend, aiming for a 19th straight medal finish across all PVL conferences.

Meanwhile, Cignal — the league’s most bemedalled squad without a championship — and ZUS Coffee were also eliminated from title contention after suffering their third defeats.

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