TWO of Philippine volleyball’s generational stars in Alyssa Valdez and Bella Belen are set to share the PVL spotlight for the very first time.
A matchup long teased by Belen’s national team stints last year finally becomes reality, as Capital1 takes on Creamline in the 2026 All-Filipino Conference on Saturday.
READ: Bella Belen's only beginning to expand her game with Capital1
Despite belonging to different eras, the two prolific outside hitters share striking parallels as multi-time UAAP champion-MVPs, national team standouts, two-way threats, psychology graduates, June 29 birthday celebrants, and wards of Grand Slam-winning mentor Sherwin Meneses.
Valdez, who has long been the yardstick of excellence in Philippine volleyball, believes that 23-year-old Belen is already poised to carry the sport’s torch with a fighting spirit second to none.
“More than her skills, I actually admire her character and personality on and off the court,” she said.
“Talagang never say die, ‘yung grit, and then ‘yung disiplina, so I just really can't wait for her to blossom into someone na talagang mas iidolohin pa ng maraming kabataan.”
But before any talk of a changing of the guard, Valdez remains focused on extending the Cool Smashers' two-game win run and giving Belen and the Solar Spikers a worthy battle.
“In our game with Bella this coming Saturday, very excited and looking forward na sana mabigyan namin siya ng magandang laban kasi she deserves that,” she said.
Not so new faces
Fresh off a five-set victory over Choco Mucho where she unleashed a career-high 29 points, facing Creamline carries special significance for Belen.
Standing across the net will be familiar figures, including her former National U coach in Meneses and teammate in Sheena Toring, as well as Alas Pilipinas captain Jia de Guzman.
“Bella is very competitive, but it's not just her. Team effort talaga sila sa past games nila, so alam naming hindi kami pwede magpabaya,” said de Guzman.
For Belen, however, the opportunity goes beyond the matchup itself, as she gets the best seat in the house to see how one of the league’s most established champions will assemble and attack against them.
“Gusto ko rin makita kung paano magpe-perform ‘yung team kalaban ang isang champion team, lalo na ‘yung Creamline,” she said.
“Hindi basta-basta kalaban ‘yung Creamline. Meron na silang sistemang nabuo. Meron na silang foundation. I’m very excited talaga for Saturday.”
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