CREAMLINE ace setter Jia Morado believes that her role and that of Petro Gazz counterpart Djanel Cheng will be a huge factor in their best-of-three Finals series for the Premier Volleyball League Season 3 Reinforced Conference championship.
For Morado, whoever maximizes the depth of their respective teams will prevail as Game One of their best-of-three Finals series begins on Wednesday.
“I think between setters who can maximize all of their spikers in the finals, yun yung magwawagi,” said Finals MVP Morado as her team battles a new rival in their third straight Finals appearance.
Morado is going to orchestrate the offense for imports Kuttika Kaewpin and Ale Blanco and the star-studded locals Alyssa Valdez, Michele Gumabao, Risa Sato and Jema Galanza.
Cheng, meanwhile, is dishing out the brilliant plays on super reinforcements Wilma Salas and Janisa Johnson and middle blockers Jeanette Panaga, Cherry Nunag and Cai Baloaloa as well as spikers Paneng Mercado and Jonah Sabete.
The former Ateneo Lady Eagle topped the best setter race at the end of the double round elimination with 5.94 excellent sets by frame, while Cheng, ex-College of Saint Benilde setter, wound up third with 4.97 excellent sets by frame behind BanKo’s Jem Ferrer (5.43).
But that won’t be a factor come to the Finals as Morado stressed that whoever is more precise will get the advantage.
“Pagdating kasi sa position namin sa pagiging setter, yung pagiging precise talaga yung number one. So, we're going to have to work on that,” she said.
But more than that, Morado is putting premium on team work and insisting that PetroGazz is a strong finalist.
“It can't be just be one person or two people, it has to be a total team effort para umabot sa dulo,” said Morado. “We're going to have to work on that, kahit galing kami sa panalo, we're going to prepare even more for Petro Gazz because we know how strong of a team they are.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
