MANILA, Philippines – Jaja Santiago scored a conference-best 35 points to lead the Foton Tornadoes past Generika-Ayala, 25-20, 25-23, 23-25, 25-15, in the 2017 Philippine Superliga (PSL) All-Filipino Conference Saturday at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.

Santiago had 30 kills, three aces, and two blocks to lead the Tornadoes to their second win in a row, putting them on top of Group B of the tournament.

It was the fourth highest offensive output in the PSL since American import Kristy Jaeckel scored 40 points, Stephanie Niemer had 38, and Santiago's older sister, Dindin Manabat, fired 37 points in her debut game for Petron back in 2014.

Foton coach Moro Branislav lauded Santiago's performance, as it was her presence that propelled the Tornadoes to a strong start and a stronger finish.

"Jaja is an important player for us in this All-Filipino," Branislav said of Santiago, who was given limited minutes in their opening match against newcomer Cherrylume. "As you see, we have seven new players. We have a new setter. This is very difficult for us. I'm glad Jaja is there to help us pull it through."

It helped that the Tornadoes limited their errors in the fourth set, allowing them to finally put away the gritty Lifesavers.

"We had no mistake, no big number of mistake in the fourth set," said Branislav, who noted that they had 13 errors in the third set alone. "We had only one mistake (in Set 4), if I am correct."

• READ: Valdez, Reyes promise pure fun in 'Battle of the Rivals'

In the second game, the Cignal HD Spikers shook off a subpar start to shock Petron, 15-25, 25-22, 25-18, 25-19.

Jovelyn Gonzaga led the way for Cignal with 16 points, including the match-winning kill, as the HD Spikers handed the Blaze Spikers their first loss of the conference.

Petron was coming off a morale-boosting win against defending champion F2 Logistics in their first match of the tournament, but could not sustain their charge against the HD Spikers.

At 2-0, Cignal sits on top of Group A of the tournament.

Meanwhile, the All-Filipino Conference opened with a show that underscored the importance of charity among the country's elite athletes.

Long jump specialist Katherine Kaye Santos, De La Salle University students and members of the national table tennis team personally spearheaded the solicitation of donation for the medical fund of Ian Lariba, the Rio Olympics competitor who had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a deadly blood disease that puts her in critical condition.

PSL president Ramon "Tats" Suzara said this is the perfect time for the local sports community to rally behind Lariba and help her overcome the most important challenge in her life.

"We are one with the sports community in helping Ian Lariba overcome the most challenging battle of her life," said Suzara, adding that the league already donated half of its ticket sales of its first two playdates to Lariba's medical fund.

"We wanted to send a statement that the PSL is more than just volleyball. We are also doing our share by giving it back to the sports community, especially to a distinguished athlete like Ian Lariba."

For more sports coverage, visit the ABS-CBN Sports website.