Russian import Elena Samoilenko is set for another tour of duty with PLDT.
The High Speed Hitters announced the return of the 6-foot-4 outside hitter on Friday.
“We just loved Lena Samoilenko’s quiet intensity so much that we had to bring her back for another tour of duty with the PLDT High Speed Hitters in the upcoming 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference,” the team said.
Samoilenko previously played for PLDT in the 2022 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference, where they failed to make it to the semifinals after finishing the elimination round with a 3-5 record.
She led the league in scoring during that conference with a total of 213 points in eight games played.
Samoilenko, who was coming off a stint with Turan Turkistan in Kazakhstan, will be returning to a completely different High Speed Hitters squad this time around.
Since she left, Rald Ricafort, who led Petro Gazz to the Reinforced Conference title that year, has replaced George Pascua and now calls the shots for PLDT.
While most of her previous teammates are still with the team, the High Speed Hitters have since added top-flight talents such as Fil-Canadian Savannah Davison, Majoy Baron, Kim Fajardo, and Kianna Dy, who is expected to make her return in the upcoming conference.
PLDT fell short in the season-opening All-Filipino Conference, missing the semifinals for the third consecutive time but managed to cap the tournament with an impressive 8-3 record.
