BACARRA, Ilocos Norte — Deanna Wong is fearless.
That’s what Choco Mucho head coach Oliver Almadro has been saying of his playmaker, who proved to be vital in their blazing start in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Open Conference.
“Kung hindi man siya ang pinaka superstar na setter, she’s really a brave setter and siya yung setter na love ng mga teammates niya,” said Almadro after their three-set win over Cignal on a gloomy Tuesday at the PCV Socio-Civic and Cultural Center.
Wong, who provided the brilliant plays in the Flying Titans’ fourth straight victory, was smiling behind a face mask when Almadro described how brave she is and quipped "no comment" to reporters asking about her response while sharing a laugh.
On a serious note, the 23-year-old is just blessed to be back on the court after two years due to a stress fracture injury in the shin of her right leg from Ateneo’s UAAP Season 81 title run in 2019 and a year-long layoff in 2020 due to the pandemic.
“Two years kasi nawala I’m just really grateful na bumalik yung volleyball, bumalik yung paglaro namin, bumalik yung team,” Wong said.

The former UAAP Best Setter is also grateful to embark a new chapter as a professional with college coach Almadro and her fellow Lady Eagles Kat Tolentino, Maddie Madayag, Bea De Leon, Ponggay Gaston and Kim Gequillana on her side.
“It’s been really tough. The past few months, it’s been really rough and they were there para i-support ako, andyan para sa akin nagmamahal. Sobrang grateful ako sa kanila talaga,” she said.
“We’re slowly getting there even if bago pa lang ako sa Choco Mucho. It’s the system kasi we know each other nung college nagkasama kami and it’s about getting to know each other talaga. Hindi lang siya team, we’re really a family yun yung nakapag-angat sa amin ng slight lang naman.”
The Choco Mucho coach is also glad that Wong runs his plays as she fast-tracks the team’s improvement from a seventh-place finish in the Flying Titans' maiden PVL Open Conference two years ago.
“Si Boss D apple ko yan. Talagang kilala na niya ko, yung galit ko, yung intensity ko, she can manage. Bata pa kasi kilala ko na yan,” Almadro said. “I know how she plays and I really trust her. Yung maganda she’s trusting my system and yung pinaka maganda sa lahat matapang si Deanna.”
Matchup vs idol
After winning their first four games, Wong knows it’s still a long way to go and she’s looking forward to learn more in their remaining games, especially against Creamline led by her idol Jia Morado and Chery Tiggo that has Jasmine Nabor and veteran playmakers Tina Salak and Gyzelle Sy.
“Every setter naman excited ako magplay kasi iba iba yung level nila ng game, iba iba yung strategy nila. It’s not really about the rivalry but it’s about learning from them also kung ano din yung kailangan kong iimprove din sa sarili ko,” Wong said. “Looking forward to Creamline and Chery Tiggo and yung remaining games.”
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