With her family watching from the stands for the very first time, Michele Gumabao refused to let the moment slip away.
Under the bright lights of the Philsports Arena, the Creamline veteran rose to the occasion. She delivered a performance worthy of the spotlight and her loved ones’ cheers in the Cool Smashers’ gritty five-set escape over Cignal in the 2025 Premier Volleyball League Invitational on Thursday night.
The reigning tournament MVP looked visibly fueled by the presence of her cousins and uncle, who flew in from San Francisco, powering Creamline to a hard-earned 17-25, 25-17, 22-25, 25-11, 15-8 victory over the HD Spikers.
Gumabao erupted for a game-high 22 points — including five clutch markers in the decisive fifth set — built on 18 attacks and four blocks as Creamline evened its record to 1-1 in the six-team midseason tournament.
“To my family from SF [San Francisco] watching live for the first time — my cousins, my tito — tomorrow they’re going home,” said the veteran opposite spiker, smiling wide in the post-match interview as she savored the rare chance to perform in front of her relatives.
The 32-year-old carried that extra fire into the final frame, leaning on her coach’s simple reminder to keep swinging whenever the ball came her way.
(C) PVL Images
“Pag sinabi ni Coach She (Meneses), palo lang. O sige, palo lang. Wala, nasa utak ko talaga, pag may bola, palo lang talaga. Hindi ko na iniisip kung saan; pag nakita ko, hangga’t may power pa, power pa,” Gumabao said.
“Sabi ni coach, ‘Wala pa tayong pagod, sige palo lang.’ Every time na mabigyan ng opportunity, nandoon talaga yung endurance at power sa game. So kahit fifth set pa ’yan, hindi kami puwedeng magpakita ng pagod,” she added.
“’Yun lang ginawa ko pagdating sa fifth set. At siyempre, nagtiwala lang din ako sa teammates ko na kaya namin ’to, dahil hindi rin naman ako makakapuntos kung hindi kami nagtulong-tulong sa loob.”
But for Gumabao, the night wasn’t just about her big scoring output. More importantly, she stressed, it was about Creamline finally breaking through in a five-setter — a challenge they repeatedly stumbled on in their last campaign.
“I think yung best lesson na lang namin ngayon is yung five-set game na panalo namin, kasi last [On Tour] yung parehong five-set games namin, talo. It’s good na maramdaman ulit namin yung pressure ng five-set game,” she said.
“Umpisa pa lang, andoon na yung pressure na hindi kami puwede mag-relax. Kahit naging maganda yung resulta ng past games namin, kailangan pa rin namin magtiyaga dahil panibagong season ’to. Hindi talaga kami puwedeng sumabay sa galaw ng kalaban namin. I think yun yung isa sa mga naging problema namin kanina—nawawala kami sa sarili naming pace ng laro. Kailangan namin ma-overcome ’yun.”
