Champions League: Anybody’s ballgame
The chase for the Philippine National Volleyball Federation Champions League title will be a wide-open race as five teams battle it out for pride and glory starting Sunday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila.
Veteran-laden pro clubs Chery Tiggo, Cignal and Petro Gazz as well as seasoned squad Philippine Army try to knock the crown off defending champion College of Saint Benilde in the weeklong tournament.
“It’s a wide-open field as all teams vow to wage strong fights,” PNVF secretary-general Donald Caringal said during the tournament’s launch on Friday at the Philippine Sports Commission conference hall.
“With a balanced cast of seasoned pro clubs, new-look squads and a collegiate team, expect the matches to be a tossup for the prestigious title,” he added.
The Lady Blazers, who are priming up for their three-peat bid in the National Collegiate Athletics Association in April, are sure to have their hands full.
Chery Tiggo will be parading two new faces in veterans Aby Maraño and Ara Galang, along with holdovers former Premier Volleyball League Most Valuable Player Mylene Paat, sisters EJ and Eya Laure, Shaya Adorador, Ces Robles, playmakers Alina Bicar and Jasmine Nabor, Jen Nierva and Cza Carandang.
Maraño and Galang were part of the tournament’s inaugural champion F2 Logistics back in 2022.
“(We want) to be the champions. “My new teammates and I won’t allow our hardships and dedication in training go to waste,” the 31-year-old Maraño said.
Cignal, on the other hand, will have another PVL MVP Ces Molina lead the way backed by Vanie Gandler, Roselyn Doria, Riri Meneses, reigning PVL 2nd All-Filipino Conference Best Setter Gel Cayuna and new libero Dawn Macandili-Catindig.
Banneruing Petro Gazz, under new Japanese head coach Koji Tsuzurabara, are Filipino-American Brooke Van Sickle, Myla Pablo, Remy Palma, Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, Jonah Sabete, playmaker Djanel Cheng, Nicole Tiamzon and recruits Michelle Morente, Ethan Arce and Joy Dacoron.
Philippine Army, meanwhile, fields its battle-tested core. Philippine Army and Petro Gazz open their campaign on Sunday’s 3:30 p.m. curtain-raiser followed by Chery Tiggo and Cignal’s battle at 6 p.m.
The tournament will have a single-round robin eliminations with the Top 4 teams advancing into the knockout semifinal. The Final is also a winner-take-all affair.