OVERSEAS playing experience might appear to be an instant advantage on paper to move a cut above the preliminary 60-player pool for the 2025 PVL Rookie Draft.
But for Fil-Canadian winger and draft hopeful Yveian Orpiano, that doesn’t prove to be the case.
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At the tender age of 20, the 5-foot-4 outside spiker already carries international pedigree having played college volleyball at Concordia University of Edmonton in Canada.
She knows that to get to a point where she’d be just as desirable enough to be chosen by a PVL team come draft night, there’s more to the challenge than just her height deficit that she’ll need to fine-tune to realize her sporting dreams on home soil.
“Right now, there’s lots of things that I can improve and bring to the table as everyone here is skilled, fast, diverse. I think I can bring in the energy to the league,” Orpiano said.
“It’s very crucial [draft combine], especially for foreign players since we weren’t exposed to the UAAP or the NCAA. I think it’s really important for the other players from different countries to be able to show their skills in the combine.”
What brings you here, Yveian?
Despite her lean build and short height, quitting on her dreams has never been in Orpiano's outlook.
She shared how she's always faced challenges in Canada because of her height -- getting limited minutes over there.
“I started playing when I was in Grade 6 and I played throughout my second year of university in Canada,” Orpiano said.
“Not really much of an experience in university [for me]. I was more of a reserve player so I never really touched the floor there.”
As her college years came to a close, it dawned on her that a sustainable future in the sport wasn’t to be if she was to pursue it in Canada.
Hence, Orpiano was quick to jump on the opportunity to throw her name in the mix to rediscover her Filipino roots and shoot her shot in the PVL.
“Realistically speaking, I had no future in Canada for volleyball as being 5’4. You’re always kind of overlooked, especially when you’re shorter,” Orpiano admitted.
“This window opened for me last December and I just kind of took the opportunity to play with my [Filipino] people and show them what short Filos [Filipinos] can do on the court.”
Blazing a maple trail
A fellow Fil-Canadian in Creamline libero Aleiah Torres blazed the path Orpiano also hopes to take as the first Fil-foreign player to be drafted in the PVL.
“She’s one of the first Fil-Canadians that I saw break the barrier of [players] coming from overseas to play in the Philippines and I really look up to her,” Orrpiano said.
Orpiano will soon learn her fate as the PVL stages its second-ever draft ceremony on June 8 at Novotel Manila Araneta City.
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