IT was a difficult week-long stretch for the Philippine contingent in the recently-concluded 2025 AVC Women’s Champions League.
Creamline, Petro Gazz and PLDT all made it out of pool play with 1-1 (win-loss) records before bowing out one after the other at the hands of three of the continent's powerhouse champion clubs.
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But in the official tournament rankings, it was the 10-time PVL champions that dropped to the back of the Philippines’ three-team pack.
The Cool Smashers finished Asia’s biggest club competition in eighth place — last among all quarterfinalists.
Bar its opening-day 29-27, 25-20, 25-19 sweep of Jordan’s Al Naser Club, Creamline was the only Philippine team not to win a set in the two matches it lost.
The reigning PVL All-Filipino Conference runners-up were swept by eventual champion Zhetysu of Kazakhstan to end Pool A, 16-25, 17-25, 17-25,
They would again fall flat to Thailand's dynastic champion club Nakhon Ratchasima in the knockout quarterfinals, again in straight sets, 15-25, 22-25, 16-25.
Petro Gazz, PLDT lead the way
After moving to within a set from the Final Four, Petro Gazz put out the most promising fight among the three Philippine teams to finish the continental showcase in sixth place.
The Angels once held a two sets to one lead in the knockout quarterfinals against China’s Beijing BAIC Motor just before losing grip of the lead and the match altogether.
Prior to the playoffs, the newly-crowned PVL champions suffered a four-set loss to Chinese Taipei’s Taipower before winning in straight sets against Hong Kong’s Hip Hing.
Petro Gazz’ 26-year-old guest import Gia Day also emerged as the leading scorer among the three Philippine teams with 71 total points capped by a 35-piece in their five-set quarterfinals loss.
PLDT, the only Philippine team to not max out its three-import allocation, ranked seventh in the competition.
The High Speed Hitters showed signs of promise after pushing Creamline’s quarterfinals tormentor Nakhon Ratchasima to the edge in a five-set thriller after sweeping past Australian champion Queensland Pirates.
Its dream run came to a close in a quick sweep pulled off by Zhetysu in its near-perfect title run.
The Philippine men’s national team, branded as the Cignal HD Spikers, is next to take center stage in the AVC Champions League in Japan from May 11 to 18.
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