ILAGAN — Zam Nolasco left Benilde with an individual honor few middle blockers have ever claimed.
What she did not leave with was the one thing the Lady Blazers had grown accustomed to holding.
Nolasco capped her final NCAA season with a rare Most Valuable Player award as a middle blocker, but her historic campaign ended without a championship after Benilde’s five-peat bid was denied by Letran in Season 101.
For a program that had dominated the NCAA women’s volleyball scene for years, the loss marked an unfamiliar ending. The Lady Blazers had built a dynasty in Taft, winning four straight titles before the Lady Knights finally stopped their historic run.
Now in the PVL, Nolasco has a chance to chase the championship that slipped away under the same coach who helped build Benilde’s reign: Jerry Yee.
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The Thunderbelles’ mentor, who also guided Nolasco during her collegiate days and later during her stint with Farm Fresh in 2023, has made his message clear as she begins her professional journey with ZUS Coffee.
The goal is simple: win in what she hadn’t won to close out her last chapter.
“During training po dito sa ZUS, sinabi niya sa akin na dito na lang daw kami kumuha ng championship which is parang, ‘Ah okay, makakabawi pa ako’ kasi marami pa namang time para mag-prepare at marami pang games kami na pagsasamahan ni coach. Sobrang gaan lang din po kasi silang makasama sa loob,” Nolasco said.
Yee already had the groundwork laid for Nolasco’s transition to the pros.
After steering Benilde to four straight titles, the veteran coach helped prepare Nolasco for the next chapter of her career, with the middle blocker eventually reuniting with him in the PVL.
“Same lang din po kasi ng coach sa college, same lang din po ng coach na pro. So parang direct na po talaga. Parang pinag-usapan na rin naman ni Coach Jerry na ganun nga po yung plano after college. Ayun po, okay naman po siya sa akin,” she said.
But while Nolasco enters ZUS Coffee carrying an MVP tag not many had as pro newcomers, nothing is guaranteed.
The Thunderbelles already have a deep pool of middle blockers who have proven themselves at the highest level, including Alas Pilipinas standout Thea Gagate, Riza Nogales, and AC Miner. They also added another promising option in this year’s No. 4 overall pick Nicole Ong.
Before she can help ZUS Coffee chase a championship, Nolasco knows she must first earn her place in a crowded rotation.
“Hindi naman po madali na i-keep ‘yung position eh, like ‘yung spot. Ang daming player na pumapasok and ang daming makakasama mo ng iba-iba kaya dapat maging consistent lang po sa ginagawa ko,” Nolasco said.
The transition from Taft to the PVL may come with a new jersey, but Nolasco’s mission remains familiar.
She spent years fighting for championships with Benilde. Now, she hopes to do the same with the Thunderbelles, surrounded by several former Lady Blazers and guided by the coach who helped shape her into arguably one of college volleyball’s brightest rising stars.
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