Volleyball: Customs Survive Excelsior Thriller as COAS Spikers Overcome CNS
Oru Leonard
Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) battled back from two set defeats to overcome Excelsior VC 3-2 on Day Four of the 2026 CGC Volleyball Premier League final phase in Abuja on Monday.
The defending champions secured a hard-fought victory with a 21-25, 25-23, 24-26, 25-19, 15-7 scoreline at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Package B, after Excelsior VC pushed them to the limit.
Excelsior took the opening set and edged the third to put the title holders under pressure. However, Customs rallied to win the fourth set before producing a commanding display in the deciding set to complete the comeback.
In another women’s category encounter, COAS Spikers recovered from losing the opening set to defeat CNS Spikers 3-1.
CNS Spikers won the first set 25-22, but COAS responded emphatically with a 25-13 victory in the second set before taking the next two sets 25-23 and 25-22 to seal the contest.
NAF Rockets also recorded a 3-1 victory over Anambra Queens, winning the first, second and fourth sets 25-22, 25-16 and 25-17 respectively. Anambra Queens claimed the third set 27-25 but could not sustain their challenge.
NSCDC delivered a convincing performance against Benue Queens, winning 3-0 (25-20, 27-25, 25-14), while Life Camp VC defeated Olalomi Royal Angels by the same margin, with set scores of 25-20, 25-13 and 25-16.
VIP Spikers produced one of the most emphatic results of the women’s matches, crushing Kada Emeralds 3-0. VIP dominated all three sets 25-10, 25-7 and 25-12.
Men’s Category
The men’s competition also produced several exciting encounters, with Defence Spikers defeating Nigeria Police Force 3-1.
Defence Spikers won the first two sets 27-25 and 25-20 before Nigeria Police Force responded with a 25-18 victory in the third. Defence Spikers, however, closed out the match with a 25-16 win in the fourth set.
CNS Spikers recorded a straight-set victory over Ajase Ipo, winning 25-22, 25-22 and 25-19 to secure a 3-0 result.
Nigeria Correctional Service had to dig deep to overcome Life Camp VC 3-2 in a closely contested encounter. The Correctional Service team won the first two sets 25-22 and 25-17, but Life Camp VC fought back to take the next two 25-23 and 27-25. The Correctional Service eventually prevailed 15-8 in the deciding set.
COAS Spikers also survived a five-set battle against Offa VC, winning 3-2. After taking the opening set 25-23, COAS lost the second 28-30 and third 22-25 before recovering to win the fourth 25-20 and the deciding set 15-9.
Sunshine Spikers defeated UCEM VC 3-1 in another encounter. Sunshine won the opening set 25-23 but lost the second 22-25 before taking the third 25-21 and the fourth 26-24.
NSCDC completed the day’s men’s fixtures with a 3-1 victory over Kano Pillars. The Civil Defence side won the first two sets 25-21 and 25-16. Kano Pillars responded with a 25-21 win in the third set, but NSCDC sealed the match with another 25-21 victory in the fourth.
The Day Four results highlighted the competitive nature of the 2026 CGC Volleyball Premier League final phase, with several teams demonstrating resilience in closely fought encounters as the competition continued in Abuja.
