IT might just be her first overseas stint in the pros, but there were a few familiar faces that fueled ZUS Coffee import Anna DeBeer to her biggest win yet against defending PVL Reinforced Conference champion Creamline.
The 24-year-old winger dropped 37 on the Cool Smashers in a 25-27, 25-17, 25-20, 25-22 win to stay unbeaten three games into import-laden play.
READ: ZUS Coffee adds on to perfect start with upset of Creamline
That performance catapulted DeBeer atop the league’s scoring leaderboard with 92 total points (30.67 per game) and second in spiking with a 41.26-percent success rate.
There were actually two things about that particular match with Creamline that made it a unique experience for the charismatic American.
First, standing opposite to her was her championship tormentor in the Major League Volleyball (MLV) finals just five months ago in Cool Smashers import Courtney Schwan.
DeBeer, who played for fourth-seeded Indy Ignite, lost the title game to Schwan and Petro Gazz import Lindsey Vander Weide’s Orlando Valkyries in four sets.
LVW fired 15 markers while Schwan pitched in five for the champions. DeBeer only played the first two sets and was held to only three points.
Part of the win might’ve been made sweeter by gaining a measure of revenge on Schwan, but the result itself outweighed any of that for the Thunderbelles' reinforcement.
“No, I don't think it was definitely a revenge game,” DeBeer told SPIN.ph.
“It's always just fun playing people like her. She's a very experienced, very smart player so just to kind of have her out there and play against her, it's really challenging and it makes it more exciting.”
The pride for DeBeer in taking center stage with Schwan in overseas play mainly comes from the fact that they get to share the opportunity to showcase and typify the ascent of American volleyball.
And along with LVW, Akari’s Annie Mitchem, Choco Mucho’s Marlee Smith, and Fil-Americans Brooke Van Sickle and MJ Phillips, among others, the star-spangled banner continues to shine bright in Philippine volleyball today.
“We all do a really good job of watching film and really working on like how we can change the game and make adjustments,” DeBeer said.
“We've all really worked hard to be powerful and that kind of helps. Obviously, the hitters are powerful here, but I think it really helps us kind of strategize and follow up a game plan and just find ways to score on not the best sets.
Fear DeBeers
The other special part in DeBeer’s 37-point night? Having her mother Sara make the trip from the other side of the world from their hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
While it wasn’t a surprise visit, the ZUS Coffee import shared how several scheduling conflicts had to be sorted out before her mom's Philippine visit could even play out.
“It means the world. She loves to come and try and see new places, so she knew when I came here, she wanted to try to make it work with her schedule and I'm so glad that it did,” she said.
“To have her here in the crowd, it feels like home. It’s a little piece of home with me and it's awesome.”
The DeBeer matriarch also shared with SPIN.ph how the Philippines was the ‘farthest I’ve been from the United States in my lifetime,’ but was well worth it in seeing her daughter play outside the country for the first time.
“This is a sport that she loves to play. We support her in her endeavors and we want her to enjoy her experience here, too, in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play internationally,” she said.
“Back when she started, volleyball wasn’t as big as it has become in the last few years, both within the United States and outside the United States. Now, I just want her to continue to love the game, play it as long as she can, and learn something new every day from the people she plays with to the sport itself.”
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