A perfect storm awaits in the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference finals as a thunderous ‘Baldo’ and a raging ‘Bagyong Pablo’ will cross paths for a shot at championship glory.
They may be two of the sport’s most renowned veteran stars now, but Creamline captain Alyssa Valdez and Petro Gazz ace winger Myla Pablo go way back in the UAAP.
READ: Creamline bracing for war of attrition against red-hot Petro Gazz
For a time, Valdez and Pablo were among the brightest faces of college volleyball for Ateneo and National University, respectively.
Among their biggest battles? Ateneo’s stepladder dream run in Season 76 where Valdez & Co. had to beat Pablo and the rest of the Lady Bulldogs twice to secure an unlikely finals berth.
Then came the final chapters of a Cinderella run like no other that saw the Lady Eagles overcome mighty La Salle’s thrice-to-beat advantage and win Katipunan’s first UAAP women’s volleyball crown.
Fast forward to the club volleyball scene, the veteran outside hitter duo went on to win 11 combined PVL titles and five of the league’s 16 MVP awards ever given.
Aging like fine wine
Having been through injury spells and reduced game time, Valdez and Pablo are back in full strength and are set to leave no stone unturned with championship gold on the line.
As Valdez puts it before facing Pablo and her fellow ‘old guards’ in Petro Gazz, ‘the fire in her is back.’
“I’m very, very much excited. She's (Myla) well adjusted with the team after how many years with Petro Gazz. This is her fittest today if I may say sa lahat ng nakikita namin sa mga games and definitely the fire in her is back,” Valdez said.
“It's harder to fight against those kind of players na nandun yung fire, nandun yung passion and kondisyon. Pagdating sa side namin magdo-doble, extra hard work talaga kami para matapatan namin yung mga ganung challenges.
Come Game One of the best-of-three title series on Tuesday, playing in a familiar battle ground with her fellow ’OGs’ will all boil down to who wants another taste of gold most.
“Veteran teams, both mentally tough […] and mga OGs talaga. We'll learn from them and we wanna give them a good fight so gonna work harder (in the PVL Finals).”
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