Brooke Van Sickle came prepared—not just for Choco Mucho but for the legion of Flying Titans fans who packed the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Tuesday night.
With the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference semifinals reaching a fever pitch, the Petro Gazz star knew she had to be ready for both the competition and the atmosphere.
In the end, Van Sickle and the Angels rose to the occasion, blocking out the cheers and jeers to defeat the Flying Titans in a grueling four-set battle, 24-26, 25-18, 25-17, 27-25, moving within one win of the Finals.
“Choco Mucho did a fantastic job. Even their fans, it’s so cool to play in environments like that. Just so much energy. It’s hard to… It can be hard to focus, but I thought we did a great job just staying calm and together. And as a team, we just talked about it,” shared the Fil-American outside spiker.
“For us, we just kept trying to stay grounded, trying to stay patient. We knew it wasn’t going to be a pretty win. It was going to be a groveling, tiring win. It took everyone. Just to try to stay as a team—it was rough. But a win’s a win. Take it.”
(C) PVL Images
The 2024 AFC MVP made her presence felt all over the court, finishing with 17 points, 22 excellent receptions, and 12 digs. She had strong support from MJ Phillips and Myla Pablo, who chipped in 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Van Sickle made it a point to contribute in every way possible—whether through scoring or floor defense—to push Petro Gazz to the championship round. They can officially book their Finals ticket with a win against Akari on Thursday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“I just try to take every touch seriously. How I think about defense is, the better I dig the ball, the more opportunities my teammates get. And it’s just—the better I can dig, the more calm it is versus chaotic, out of system,” said Van Sickle, who remains a focal point in every opponent’s scouting report.
“So, I try my hardest to get the middles involved and not stress out the setters as much. Just give everyone good opportunities. That’s kind of— I feel like that’s how the thought process should be with defense. But yeah, when I’m not in the front court, then it’s like, okay, what can I do in the back court to give back? So basically, yeah, that’s it.”
