A REMORSEFUL Danijela Dzakovic apologized to BaliPure teammate Jewelle Bermillo for hitting her on the nape in on bizarre scene that marred their Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Season 3 Reinforced Conference match on Saturday.
As the Water Defenders' winless season winds down, Dzakovic was unable to control herself after a digging miscommunication with Jewelle Bermillo led to an error and Creamline wrapping up the first set.
The Montenegrin import hit Bermillo on her nape, leaving the libero in tears. She apparently realized her mistake and immediately rushe to say sorry and hug her teammate.
“One more lesson in my life especially for this situation that happened after the first set,” she said afterwards. “I just want to say sorry to my teammate. I love her, we are really good friends.”
League officials discussed the incident after the three-game bill, but later said they weren't ready to issue a statement or take action.
They said discussions will continue on Sunday.
As the video of the incident went viral, the 5-foot-8 wing spiker also expressed her apology to all the fans, admitting that she failed to control her emotion.
“I'm so disappointed of myself and I want to say sorry to all fans and people who followed us and supported our games,” she said. “I was not able to control my emotions, I have been playing volleyball for 16 years but this is the first time happening. I cannot believe. I'm shocked.”
Dzakovic explained she practiced and talked about on-court communication with Bermillo and other teammates.
"We all practiced about in game communications. And when someone say, 'My ball,' other people (should) go out (of the way),” she said. “For example, if I say 'my ball,' I play and that's it. And she go and hit my (ball) and then I cannot control (myself) because we talked about it one million times but I don't know, I'm disappointed with myself.”
Bermillo already accepted the apology of Dzakovic and BaliPure head coach Rommel Abella assured that all is well between the two and the whole team despite the winless conference.
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