IT took seven long years for Petro Gazz to get its hands on the All-Filipino trophy since joining the PVL in 2018.
Within that seven-year stretch, Creamline won the league’s crown jewel five times and Chery Tiggo once.
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The Angels knew they already had the pieces to win championships even without an import onboard, given how their first two league titles came in the 2019 and 2022 editions of the Reinforced Conference.
From coaching changes to breakthrough player additions, here’s how Petro Gazz went full throttle to seize its third overall championship and first in All-Filipino play.
Mar. 2023: Petro Gazz loses All-Filipino finals rubber match to Creamline
Petro Gazz is no stranger to losing championship bouts in the last seven years to Creamline — the team that denied them of the PVL crown in four of their first five finals meetings.
The last one prior to the recently concluded 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference was the 2023 1st All-Filipino Conference.
It was a riveting title series that saw the Angels draw first blood in four sets over the Alyssa Valdez-less Cool Smashers through Jonah Sabete's 18 points, Aiza Maizo-Pontillas’ 15 markers, and 14-point games each from MJ Phillips and now-Akari spiker Grethcel Soltones.
Such a strong Petro Gazz start was negated by an even stronger Creamline finish, as the perennial champion team completed the series comeback by taking Games 2 and 3 in five and four sets, respectively.
At the time, Creamline lifted its sixth PVL title, as the Angels had to settle for silver.
Jun. to Dec. 2023: Back-to-back playoff misses for Angels after fifth head coaching change
Not only did the Angels’ playoff fate change after that All-Filipino runner-up finish, but they also had a fair share of head coaching changes over the years.
Since now-PLDT head coach Rald Ricafort led Petro Gazz to its second PVL title in the 2022 Reinforced Conference, two new shot-callers took his place in the year that followed.
UAAP champion coach Oliver Almadro took over the reins in the first two conferences of the 2023 season prior to his appointment as the team’s new head of volleyball operations.
Albeit for just one conference, Almadro’s coaching successor was a familiar face in the Ateneo program who, like him, held the reins of the Blue Eagles’ men’s volleyball team in Timmy Sto. Tomas.
The second half of that year became the franchise’s rockiest stretch results-wise, as it produced two of the Angels’ worst finishes — ninth in the Invitationals and sixth in the 2nd All-Filipino Conference.
Jan. 2024: Petro Gazz signs Brooke Van Sickle, Koji Tsuzurabara, as ‘Bagyong Pablo’ returns
Just before the 2024 PVL season, Petro Gazz made two statement signings to show that it wasn’t just aiming at redemption after a troubling 2023 run.
The Angels were hell-bent on restoring lost glory.
On Jan. 20, the team announced its multi-awarded and prized signing in Fil-American outside hitter Brooke Van Sickle from US NCAA schools University of Oregon and University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa where she played both beach and indoor volleyball.
Less than 24 hours later, Petro Gazz wasn’t done with adding a touch of foreign flair to its title-seeking squad in welcoming a well-travelled Japanese coach in Koji Tsuzurabara who had prior tours of duty in Japan, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand, and Thailand.
The cherry on top of the Angels’ refueled unit? The addition of a veteran quartet led by the team’s returning former PVL MVP Myla Pablo following the F2 Logistics’ shock disbandment, along with Mich Morente, Joy Dacoron, and Ethan Arce.
May 2024: Angels return to PVL podium after 14 months
Coming off a preseason championship with Van Sickle and Tsuzurabara onboard, expectations were sky-high for the Angels to finally break through in the 2024 All-Filipino Conference.
That campaign was off to a blazing start, as Petro Gazz topped the elimination round with a 9-2 record.
Come single-round robin semis play, the Angels’ opening win over Chery Tiggo would also be its last for that round after yielding to sister teams Creamline and Choco Mucho in a pair of four-set losses.
The Angels finished semis play in third place and were relegated to the battle for third.
Split outcomes in the two-game series still favored Petro Gazz by virtue of a superior points ratio to win the bronze medal for its seventh PVL podium finish, with Van Sickle winning conference MVP honors in her league debut.
It might not be the step they wanted at a time, but it was still a huge step forward in realizing their championship aspirations.
Aug. 2024: Creamline eliminates BVS-Salas, Petro Gazz from Reinforced Conference
A sprint conference of sorts then ensued in the 2024 Reinforced Conference that run for just a little over a month.
With most of the powerhouse teams left undermanned by Alas Pilipinas call-ups, Petro Gazz had the opening it wanted to penetrate the field in a conference it has won more than any other team in PVL history.
Making the prospect of a third title much more promising was the return of its champion Cuban import in Wilma Salas to link up with Van Sickle at the forefront of the Angels’ offense.
After two rounds of prelims play, Petro Gazz’ 5-3 card was good enough for the No. 6 seed in the knockout quarterfinals.
The No. 3 seed at the time? Creamline.
In the end, an unprecedented hat-trick in import-laden play wasn’t to be, as the Cool Smashers made short work of the Angels in straight sets en route to the second piece of silverware in its historic Grand Slam haul.
Dec. 2024: MJ Phillips returns to Petro Gazz full-time after injury spell, KOVO stint
Amid the influx of new and returning faces early in 2024, the Angels temporarily missed the services of their champion middle blocker in Phillips.
The Fil-American defender who was part of the 2022 Reinforced Conference title-winning squad took her talents overseas by joining — and eventually being selected — in the 2024 Korean Volleyball League (KOVO) Asian Quota Draft.
Phillips was drafted fifth overall by the Gwangju AI Peppers.
She’d first find her way back to Petro Gazz in April after her KOVO stint and even saw limited action in All-Filipino play, but would then be sidelined from July onwards to heal her ailing left foot.
Upon making a full recovery just before year’s end, Phillips helped man the Angels' net defense as their third-leading blocker behind wingers Van Sickle and Pablo with 0.32 blocks per set.
Mar. 2025: Angels on brink of early playoff exit to ZUS Coffee
Bar an early prelims hiccup to Creamline, the 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference was off to a rousing start for Petro Gazz, as it once rode a league-best 10-game win streak entering the playoffs.
The No. 2-seed Angels had to wait for about a week before learning their best-of-three quarterfinals opponents — an in-form ZUS Coffee side that went on a two-game play-ins tear against Cignal and Capital1 to secure its maiden playoffs appearance.
From there, little did the league know that a storm was brewing on the horizon.
The Thunderbelles came out swinging in their playoffs debut by stunning Petro Gazz in straight sets to begin the quarterfinals — an upset that gave them two shots at an unlikely extension of their dream run in the semifinals.
But it was experience and championship-caliber poise on display for the Angels, as they were able to weather the ZUS Coffee storm in Games 2 and 3 to avert what would’ve been the greatest PVL playoff upset in recent memory.
Apr. 2025: Petro Gazz wins All-Filipino finals rubber match over Creamline
Upon completing a three-game sweep of the single-round robin semifinals against Creamline, Choco Mucho, and Akari, a sixth PVL Finals trip was in order for Petro Gazz.
There, it had yet another crack at an All-Filipino title that had eluded the Angels for the last seven years against their longtime rivals in the Cool Smashers.
Having only won eight of their 34 all-time PVL matches prior to the finals, it was understandable to question if Petro Gazz is a worthy foil for 10-time champion Creamline.
In this title series, the Angels presented a strong case — one that the league hasn’t seen in quite a while.
This year, they weren’t just challengers, but were also capable contenders to topple the Cool Smashers’ longstanding dynasty.
By winning the series opener in a thrilling five-setter, Petro Gazz was treading an identical path to that 2023 All-Filipino heartbreak where it led 1-0, only to lose the series in three games.
That's because Creamline revived its embattled five-peat bid by claiming a riveting five-setter of its own in Game 2 to force a rubber match.
The only difference this time? The Angels knew just how to finish the story on a winning note.
With a four-set triumph in the winner-take-all Game 3, there wasn’t going to be any more heartbreaks or settling for second place as it often did in years past.
From Van Sickle and Phillips to the likes Pablo, Sabete, Maizo-Pontillas, captain Remy Palma, and many more, this champion unit has finally found its winning fuel.
And so, the team Tsuzurabara would often call ‘challengers’ are now champions.
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