PETRO Gazz continued to trim its roster after parting ways with mainstays Joy Dacoron and Blove Barbon, further thinning the ranks of the four-time PVL champions in a frantic offseason reshuffle.
The latest exits bring the Angels’ list of departures to five, following the earlier goodbyes to Remy Palma, Chie Saet, and Marian Buitre.
READ: Rumored Nxled-Petro Gazz merger faces resistance from some teams
Dacoron, 30, was something of a journeywoman prior to her over-a-year stint with Petro Gazz, during which she was part of both championship runs in the club’s golden 2025 season.
However, her time as an Angel was quietly disrupted by recurring hand injuries that kept the 5-foot-10 middle blocker sidelined and, at times, out of uniform altogether.
Dacoron is now headed to her seventh PVL team, having previously suited up for F2 Logistics, Cignal, Chery Tiggo, Banko Perlas, and Sta. Lucia before her most recent stop.
The beauty queen-athlete was also a recognized force during the league’s semi-pro era, earning a second best middle blocker citation with the Perlas Spikers in the 2018 Reinforced Conference.
Barbon, meanwhile, closes the book on a two-year run with the Angels that was defined by her unique shared-libero setup with Jellie Tempiatura.
Unlike most PVL teams, Petro Gazz regularly alternated the two floor defenders, with Barbon handling receptions while Tempiatura focused primarily on digs.
A former UAAP women’s beach volleyball champion with University of Santo Tomas, Barbon first broke into the PVL with now-defunct Foton in 2023.
When the Tornadoes folded after just one conference, she found a new home with Petro Gazz and played a key role in the team’s ascent to back-to-back titles in what ultimately became her final season in red.
The growing Petro Gazz exodus is widely viewed as a byproduct of the club’s looming plans to join forces with Nxled, a move that would see the Chameleons absorb whatever remains of the Angels’ championship core by the end of one of the most turbulent offseasons in recent PVL history.
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