CANDON, Ilocos Sur – Five days removed from the sting of a finals loss, the Cignal Super Spikers found themselves facing a reality far more painful—one that, they would soon learn, marked the end of their journey together.
As it turned out, their Game 2 loss to the Creamline Cool Smashers in the 2026 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference last Thursday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum would be their last game together as a team.
On Tuesday, Cignal gathered once more—not for recovery, not for film, not for the next tournament—but for an ending, as the team officially announced that it would take a leave of absence from the league.
The timing made it all the more difficult to absorb.
They were coming off a breakthrough campaign—one that signaled a resurgence and firmly restored them to contender status after a year of rebuilding. Patience with the core had finally begun to pay off, with the pieces falling into place at just the right time.
There was still momentum, still something to build on.
But inside that meeting, the message was clear and final: the team would be disbanded.
For the players inside the room, it wasn’t just a team that ended—it was a chapter of their lives.
“Hindi pa talaga nagsi-sink in,” said Erika Santos, who played a key role in the Super Spikers’ turnaround over the past year, helping anchor the very resurgence that made the ending even harder to accept.
“Nasa stage pa ako na nagpo-process so siguro.”
Where Careers Took Shape
For many of the players, Cignal was never the place where expectations were first built—but it became the place where those expectations were finally met.
Not everyone arrived as standout collegiate stars, nor were they immediately defined by greatness upon entering the professional stage. But within the system, and over time, they found something that college volleyball rarely allows for: patience.
It was in that space that Gel Cayuna, a Far Eastern University product, gradually evolved into one of the most reliable setters in the league, turning consistency into a trademark that would later be recognized through multiple Best Setter citations, including a historic first Season Best Setter recognition.
For Cayuna, that growth came with trust she did not take for granted.
“Sobrang grateful ko rin kasi kinuha ako ng Cignal na di nila sure kung magpe-perform ba ko, pero sinugalan nila ako,” she said.
“Sobrang pasasalamat din sa Cignal kasi ang laki ng binago ng buhay ko dahil sa tiwala nila sa akin. Habambuhay akong magpapasalamat sa kanila.”
Santos, once part of a stacked De La Salle program where minutes were never guaranteed, eventually carved out a more defined offensive identity, culminating in a PVL On Tour MVP run that reflected how far her game had come.
Beyond everything, what stood out most for her was the environment she found within the team.
“Thankful ako kasi naipakita ko ‘yung true self ko sa kanila,” Santos shared.
“Hindi ako nahirapang mag-adjust and ‘yung transition from my past team, tapos sila agad ‘yung nakasama ko. Sobrang okay sa feeling na mag-work ka and at the same time, may family ka and sisters. Sobrang thankful ako sa Cignal.”
Meanwhile, Jackie Acuña, steady and often understated in her early years with National University, grew into a dependable force in the middle, later earning recognition as one of the league’s best in her position.
Her journey, she admitted, began from a place of uncertainty—but the Super Spikers gave her something she had long been searching for.
“Sobrang grateful ako sa Cignal dahil nagbukas sila ng pinto kahit na hindi masyadong malaki ‘yung background ko ng college at ‘di ako masyadong nakapaglaro,” Acuña said.
“Sila, sumugal sila kahit potential lang ‘yung dala ko. Magiging forever grateful ako sa Cignal.”
As for Vanie Gandler, who once faced scrutiny and heavy expectations during her Ateneo days, she found her scoring rhythm and confidence with the Super Spikers, eventually breaking through with an MVP award in the recently concluded All-Filipino Conference.
And she achieved that not just through individual growth, but through a nurturing environment and culture that allowed her game to flourish, with the team’s collective mindset playing a key role in her breakthrough.
“The best thing for me is them, the teammates that I met,” Gandler said.
“They helped me become a better version of myself because everyone really had one goal. We wanted to grow, and we knew that to grow, we needed to be collaborative. It’s not really a competition, and we have to work together.”
A Second Home
For team captain Dawn Catindig, the loss cut a little deeper.
Cignal wasn’t just a team—it was home.
It was where routines became comfort, where teammates turned into constants, where the uncertainties of a professional career felt a little more stable. Day after day, season after season, it gave her something steady to hold on to.
Now, that home is gone—again.
After F2 Logistics disbanded at the end of 2023, Catindig found a new beginning with the Super Spikers, stepping into a space that helped her rebuild and rediscover her place in the league.
But just as stability seemed to settle in, the cycle returned, and another familiar ending arrived far sooner than expected.
Now, she is once again faced with the difficult task of finding that same sense of belonging elsewhere.
For Catindig, it is a decision she does not intend to rush, choosing instead to take her time as she weighs her next step and searches for a place where she can feel grounded again.
“For me naman na medyo matagal na sa pros, very important sa’kin ‘yung team culture sa susunod kong pupuntahan. I’m taking my time in my decision kasi ang hirap pa rin maka-move on kasi very fresh pa rin kaya I’m just taking my time,” said the 29-year-old libero.
Business Decision
(C) Spikers Turf Images
Though the warning signs had been there, the disbandment of Cignal’s women’s volleyball team still came as a painful and unexpected blow for the players and staff involved.
Just a day before the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference opened, Cignal announced that it was releasing its men’s volleyball players while placing its Spikers’ Turf franchise on leave.
The men’s team, one of the most successful clubs in local volleyball, had built a decorated legacy with nine Spikers’ Turf titles.
Meanwhile, Cignal’s women’s program had been in existence since 2013, leading many to believe it would be spared from the restructuring.
“We never expected that kind of news. Kahit na may rumors, very hopeful pa rin kami,” said Catindig.
“But at the end of the day, it was a business decision, and we respect that. Alam naman namin na pinaglaban kami ng Cignal, and we have to go our own ways.”
However, just five days after the team finished a gallant runner-up campaign in the All-Filipino Conference, the final call came.
The move was part of a broader restructuring within Cignal TV.
For years, the company had struggled to turn a profit, with costly original productions under former CEO Jane Basas and the rapid shift of audiences to digital platforms leaving the conglomerate barely breaking even.
In sports, only UAAP coverage remained a consistent revenue driver for Cignal.
The situation was further complicated by the split between MediaQuest and ABS-CBN last December, which led some major advertisers to shift support to the Lopez-owned network.
This paved the way for Ricky Vargas to step in and lead a full restructuring of Cignal TV, resulting in sweeping organizational changes, including the momentary pause of its sporting teams.
Still, for the Super Spikers, despite how things ended, the memories remain meaningful.
For them, Cignal was more than just a team—it was a second home that helped shape and sustain their volleyball careers.
One For The Road
Before everything fully turns to uncertainty, the Super Spikers will still be seen side by side one final time at the 2026 Volleyball All-Star Showcase here—a brief but fitting reunion in a setting that celebrates the very careers Cignal helped shape.
Santos, Cayuna, Catindig, and Gandler will suit up for Team Heart, while Acuña joins Team Hustle, splitting familiar teammates into opposing sides but under the same final spotlight.
It won’t change what has already ended, but for one night, it offers something else—closure wrapped in competition, and a chance to step on the court together one last time before going their separate ways.
And in a chapter defined by departures, it will be one final moment to make it count.
“Siyempre to give back to the fans,” said Catindig.
“Para bigyan sila ng magandang laban at mag-enjoy.”
