ALYSSA Valdez is no stranger to big games and big moments.
But after a long injury layoff, the Phenom showed how shaking off the cobwebs and putting in more minutes can slowly but surely allow her to rediscover her vintage form.
READ: Back to her best, Alyssa Valdez leads Creamline comeback vs F2 Logistics
In Creamline’s five-set fightback win over F2 Logistics on Thursday, Valdez had her best game of the 2023 PVL Invitational Conference thus far with 17 points on 16 attacks and one block — her third straight double-digit output.
And for the first time in a long while, from breaching double figures to saving match points with her ingenious hits, the Phenom played the entirety of the Cool Smashers’ two-hour and 36 minutes long battle as a starter in all five sets.
“It’s been a while since I played this kind of game, lalo na sa semifinals. All the teams ay dikdikan din talaga so I’m happy na lahat ng hard work for the past eight months has been doing wonders on my game,” Valdez said.
“And I think more than that, it’s the support of my team. Grabe sila. I’m inspired to keep on going because of them,” she added.
The Creamline skipper's stellar efforts did not go unnoticed in the eyes of birthday boy and head coach Sherwin Meneses, who always had faith in what her star ace is capable of showing even in the early stages of her return from injury.
“Sobrang na-miss namin [si Alyssa] kasi matagal nga siyang nawala. Pero sa sobrang laki ng tiwala namin sa kanya, alam naming mag-dedeliver siya,” Meneses said.
“Alyssa is Alyssa. Maraming games na niyang napatunayan ‘yun so ‘di naman kami talaga nagulat,” he added.
The reigning Invitationals titleholders inched closer to a finals return trip with a 2-0 (win-loss) card ahead of their next semis matchup against in-form Cignal on Saturday.
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