IT'S all to play for with four more months of play to go in the longest-ever 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference.
Following a historic year of many firsts in the league, all focus shifts to what will be a marathon of a season-opening conference as up-and-coming challengers look to shoot down the league's traditional heavyweights.
READ: Matches and moments that defined PVL's historic 2024
The conference's first two months, however, still has the usual powerhouses in Petro Gazz, Cignal, Creamline and Chery Tiggo leading the way with at least four wins each.
There also hasn't been a shortage of upset bids and revelations from teams like ZUS Coffee and players like top draft picks Thea Gagate and Julia Coronel.
To help volleyball fans pick up from where the PVL left off at the end of 2024, SPIN.ph prepped a detailed preview of where each of the 12 teams stand and what else to expect when the All-Filipino Conference finally returns to action after over a month.
PETRO GAZZ (1st, 5-1): Winning combo unlocked?
League leaders for a reason, the Angels might just be the biggest threat to Creamline’s throne.
Although Creamline swept Petro Gazz in their elimination-round faceoff in Antipolo, something has changed quite significantly for the Angels since then.
Head coach Koji Tsuzurabara has unlocked vintage Myla Pablo to back the lethal scoring force in reigning All-Filipino Conference MVP Brooke Van Sickle, who ranks second in scoring (131 points, 21.8 per game) and fifth in spiking (37.07 percent efficiency).
Pablo stepping in for the previously-injured Jonah Sabete in the second outside hitter position has expanded the Angels’ attacking options.
In Sabete’s return, Pablo would occasionally be utilized as an opposite spiker instead along with Aiza Maizo-Pontillas to maximize Petro Gazz’ ‘big four’ on offense.
Since losing to Creamline, Petro Gazz has won four in a row with just one set conceded.
The Angels are one of only two local teams to have taken down the Cool Smashers for the PVL title in the past.
They’ve won it all before. Will they do it again this year?
CIGNAL (2nd, 4-1): What now?
The holiday break was everything but merry for Cignal, leaving the club with more questions than answers entering the new year.
Already undermanned to begin with, the HD Spikers were dealt the biggest blows yet after captain Ces Molina and Riri Meneses’ tumultuous departures from the squad.
Should the pair leave for good, Cignal will be down to just 12 active players — the fewest in the league.
Currently second in the league at 4-1, where do the HD Spikers go from here?
While Cignal still has a handful of stars onboard in Vanie Gandler, Dawn Macandili-Catindig and Gel Cayuna, losing two veteran leaders is bound to leave a huge dent and void to the squad.
Needless to say, the burden just got heavier for what remains of champion mentor Shaq delos Santos’ core.
Question is, will that depleted core of stars be enough to extend their promising start or will they crash and burn to no return?
CREAMLINE (3rd, 4-0): So far, still good
There’s no signs of slowing down for the five-peat-seeking Creamline in their first conference since the Grand Slam win.
Adding more fuel to the Cool Smashers’ fire are a few key returnees in no less than team captain Alyssa Valdez and Tots Carlos.
What’s to stop them now, right?
Well, Creamline’s unbeaten four-game start to the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference wasn’t as smooth-sailing as the numbers might show.
In fact, even the young and resurgent ZUS Coffee gave Creamline a run for its money in their final match of 2024 which went all the way to five sets.
Had the Cool Smashers failed to hold on in the fifth-set tiebreak, it would’ve ended a 12-game win streak dating back to last year’s Reinforced Conference.
Simply put, Creamline’s strong run of form as the last undefeated team isn’t free from flaws and weaknesses.
Perfection might not necessarily be the key to a fifth straight title, but the Sherwin Meneses-led Cool Smashers still must not let their guard down with a fiercer and hungrier playing field out to claim their heads this year.
CHERY TIGGO (4th, 4-2): Enough mileage left?
It has been a slow yet steady start to Chery Tiggo’s post-Eya Laure era.
New leadership under champion coach Norman Miguel has steered the Crossovers to the four-win mark and a top four placement to end 2024.
Such a show of strength would often be marred by the team’s biggest weakness to date: the lack of consistency.
Statement wins over the likes of PLDT were followed by lackluster performances in losses to Akari and Cignal.
The fast rise of a new one-two punch in Cess Robles (91 points, 15.17 per game) and veteran spiker Ara Galang (76 points, 13.67 per game) hasn’t quite cut it for a Crossovers side in need of more reliable aces apart from their go-to stars.
Losing the Laure sisters and longtime libero Buding Duremdes left staggering voids in the team.
But in order to keep hold of their standing the rest of the way, Chery Tiggo needs to brave past inevitable road bumps and prove that more than just a few names are capable of taking over the driver’s seat.
PLDT (5th, 3-2): Savi needs help
In 2024, PLDT reached the Reinforced Conference semifinals and was even a few points away from a first PVL finals berth.
Such a breakthrough top four run unfolded in the absence of their star Fil-Canadian ace Savi Davison along with yet-to-debut spiker Kianna Dy.
Davison made a triumphant return from lingering knee issues to begin the 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference and ended the year as the league’s top spiker (41.2 percent spiking efficiency) and third-leading scorer (119 points, 23.8 per game).
She has also hit double figures in scoring in all of PLDT’s five matches (3-2) so far this conference topped by a pair of 28-point performances.
The High Speed Hitters’ problem, however, is the concerning lack of support to back Davison’s scoring exploits.
Their next top scorers? Erika Santos (61 points, 12.2 per game) and Fiola Ceballos (41 points, 8.2 per game).
With a veteran floor general in Kath Arado and defensive fortresses in Majoy Baron and Dell Palomata among others, Davison must not bear the brunt of scoring duties alone if head coach Rald Ricafort and the rest of the High Speed Hittters were to keep themselves in the title race.
AKARI (6th, 3-3): Real struggle or minor slump?
It’s been a conference of ups and downs so far for Akari, having played the most games to date with six alongside Petro Gazz, Chery Tiggo, Galeries Tower and Choco Mucho.
Before evening up their record to 3-3 to end 2024, the resurgent Chargers went on a surprising three-game skid in which they didn’t win a single set against Creamline, Farm Fresh and Petro Gazz.
Bar ace spiker Grethcel Soltones’ one-game absence with a minor wrist injury, there wasn’t really much of a change in terms of who head coach Taka Minowa has at his disposal.
It could be fatigue from already playing half of their elimination round games in a one-month span, or simply failing to be at par with the upper half of the field in the early goings of the conference.
Whatever the case may be, Akari’s first acid test of 2025 against vengeance-seeking PLDT might just paint a clearer picture of whether their previous string of blowout losses was only a slump or indicative of a bigger problem altogether.
CHOCO MUCHO (7th, 3-3): Personnel problems pile up
The same old story has plagued Choco Mucho’s bid to live up to its title-contending status for the last year.
Since reaching the 2024 PVL All-Filipino Conference finals, the Flying Titans’ ship has sunk fast with a growing injury list and the temporary absences of Alas Pilipinas’ Sisi Rondina, who leads the league in scoring (134 points, 22.3 per game), and Cherry Nunag.
This was mainly why Choco Mucho’s historic All-Filipino silver medal win was followed by a franchise-worst ninth-place finish in the import-laden Reinforced Conference.
And in the ongoing 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference, the Flying Titans currently sit seventh with a 3-3 card. Their last two wins were five-set escapes over Farm Fresh and Galeries Tower.
With longtime captain and pioneer Maddie Madayag now in Japan and the likes of Deanna Wong, Aduke Ogunsanya, Regine Arocha and Mean Mendrez still recovering from injuries, Choco Mucho will enter the new year clouded by many unknowns as its ‘personnel problem’ continues.
To spare themselves from another disastrous campaign, Choco Mucho head coach Dante Alinsunurin has to extract the maximum from the likes of Rondina, Kat Tolentino, Dindin Santiago-Manabat and all who remain in the embattled squad.
ZUS COFFEE (8th, 2-3): Will the dream run continue?
ZUS Coffee has been the league’s undisputed surprise package of the 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference.
The Thunderbelles earned their first two franchise wins this conference after going 0-20 prior since debuting as a PVL team in February.
Playing a huge part in ZUS Coffee’s breakout campaign to date? A star-studded offseason haul and draft acquisitions in No. 1 overall pick Thea Gagate, veteran spiker Jovelyn Gonzaga, former F2 Logistics ace Chinnie Arroyo and ex-Cignal star Chai Troncoso.
Behind a retooled Thunderbelles side is a formidable champion coach in Jerry Yee who continues to concoct a winning brew that the league has taken notice of.
They even ended the year by putting defending champion Creamline on its toes in a bittersweet five-set loss to end 2024 with the belief that they can spar with the league’s best.
Dreams of a breakthrough playoff run are alive and well for ZUS Coffee. Hence, it will now take a consistent string of results to prove once and for all that they are the real deal.
FARM FRESH (9th, 2-3): Fear the full-strength Foxies
Expect a beefed-up Farm Fresh squad within the first month of the year when star spikers Rachel Daquis and Jolina dela Cruz make their much-awaited PVL comebacks.
Two wins in five matches to begin the conference proved just how tough it was for the undermanned Foxies to fight through a competitive field.
New head coach Benson Bocboc has his work cut out for him the moment he joined a young Farm Fresh team.
He is, however, about to receive timely boosts to their as RAD and JDC will be joined by former Adamson standout Lorene Toring in the list of oncoming team debutants.
There are plenty of foundations for Farm Fresh to build on moving forward such as their brief Invitational Conference stint with foreign guest teams from Japan and Thailand last year.
They also have the league’s second-best spiker (40.4% spiking efficiency) and fourth-leading scorer (109 points, 21.8 per game) onboard in Trisha Tubu.
With a fully-fit squad, a deep playoff run won’t be too much of a far-fetched forecast for the Foxies moving forward.
GALERIES TOWER (10th, 1-5): Almost is never enough
Galeries Tower has arguably made the most gains by a traditional cellar-dweller in the past year.
Unfortunately, it has also failed to reach the finish line in closely-contested matches one too many times.
The Highrisers lost all seven of its last five-set matches dating back to the 2024 All-Filipino Conference. Last time they won in five sets? March 16 against Capital1.
In addition, Galeries Tower fell short in its last seven Set 5s by an average losing margin of 4.29 points.
One win in six matches may seem dismal on paper, but head coach Lerma Giron has plenty to look forward to with the likes of her rookie setter-slash-spiker Julia Coronel, Jewel Encarnacion and ninth-best league scorer France Ronquillo (77 points, 12.8 per game) stepping up to the plate.
There’ll come a time sooner than later for the young Galeries Tower wherein almost will no longer be enough, and there’s no better time for them than the new year to become legitimate Highrisers — not just by name but also by work.
CAPITAL1 (11th, 1-4): Next woman who?
Capital1’s post-Marina Tushova era has been off to a flat start, having won just once in five matches.
While the Solar Spikers’ core was kept intact, there just hasn’t been a scoring force as dominant as Tushova that took over the reins on offense to begin the new PVL season.
On the bright side, however, a trifecta of go-to scorers has emerged in rookie Leila Cruz (70 points, 14 per game) and the veteran duo of Heather Guino-o (59 points, 11.8 per game) and team captain Jorelle Singh (37 points, 7.4 per game).
With relatively new pieces to go along with Capital1’s more experienced mainstays, the team continues to grapple past their collective lack of experience and chemistry as a unit.
The Roger Gorayeb-led squad will soon mark its first full year in hte PVL since its rather quick inception to complete the 12-team field.
So what else then is missing from a team with a formidable leader and an eclectic pool of promising talents? Time.
NXLED (12th, 0-5): In dire need of a win
There just hasn’t been enough of a spark for Nxled to snap its five-game losing start the conference.
The league’s last winless team has taken just three sets in five matches — sending them dead-last in the team standings.
Just a few bright spots have emerged for the struggling Chameleons so far in star spiker Chiara Permentilla, who ranks sixth in scoring (93 points, 18.6 per game) and seventh in receiving (25.35 percent efficiency), and ninth-best blocker Krich Macaslang (0.56 blocks per set).
Apart from them, nothing more really — unless a soon-to-debut veteran EJ Laure can shake things up in an instant and give the cellar-dwellers a new lease on life this conference.
So far, not even a new Italian mentor in Ettore Guidetti — the team’s third foreign head coach in four conferences — could turn the tides for the Chameleons that are on a 12-game winless run since last season’s Reinforced Conference.
Six months without a win is indicative of a dire need to scratch the surface deeper and uncover a lingering systemic root even Guidetti has yet to figure out.
While their league-worst placement boosts their chances in what is expected to be a star-studded 2025 PVL Draft, it is by no means a good look for Nxled to just be ran over by the rest of the field.
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