STA. ROSA, LAGUNA — Alyssa Valdez lauded Creamline’s ‘heart of steel’ following the Cool Smashers’ tight four-set victory over erstwhile undefeated Chery Tiggo in the 2022 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference, Saturday at the Sta. Rosa Sports Complex here.
Valdez, who fired 13 points on top of nine excellent digs in the 25-23, 20-25, 25-12, 32-30 win over the Crossovers, said that the team’s fourth set showing was a product of their recent participation in the AVC Cup and the ASEAN Grand Prix.
“Heart of steel talaga. My teammates, all the experiences I think from the AVC, the Grand Prix, and all the conferences before talagang nagbubunga siya kahit papaano,” said Valdez.
With Chery Tiggo threatening to send the game to a fifth set, the Cool Smashers took turns in delivering the crucial hits that eventually fended off the pesky Crossovers.
Valdez helped Creamline reach match point with a powerful hit before the Crossovers sent the game to a deuce.
The Rebisco-backed squad found themselves trailing by one point a couple of times only to be saved by crucial conversions coming from Turkish import Yeliz Basa and middle blocker Jeanette Panaga which tied the game at 30-all.
From there, Celine Domingo took over and hammered down back-to-back quicks off consecutive sets from Jia Morado to finish off Chery Tiggo.
“Yung maturity, yung growth, nakikita mo. Grabe, the way I see sa mga eyes din talaga nila they really want to finish it and nandoon talaga yung heart to actually fight and finish the game. As one of the seniors of the team, I’m really proud of them,” said the reigning Reinforced Conference MVP.
“Grabe nga yung extension pero the eyes are really talking. I think that’s the strength and the advantage of being together for quite a while e. Grabe yung paguusap sa mata pero grabe rin yung instructions ni coach very basic but it’s very effective,” she added.
Indeed, the win will serve as a huge confidence booster for the grand slam-seeking Cool Smashers — who remained unscathed after five games.
Valdez also urged her teammates to stay prepared for the remaining battles ahead as she believes that this win will put a target on their backs moving forward.
“It’s gonna be a big responsibility for us because syempre after this, yung mga teams paghahandaan din talaga kami and lalo kaming mas maghahanda pa so it’s really a responsiblity for us,” said Valdez.
“We’ll work harder definitely. Syempre yung expectations from ourselves from our team mas tumataas din as we go this conference so we’ll work harder and hopefully we balance the enjoyment, having fun, and being competitive.”
