Ever since he joined the team last year, Koji Tsuzurabara insisted that Petro Gazz were merely challengers.
It didn’t matter that he had a proven star in Brooke Van Sickle, or a roster that could match up against any of the league’s heavyweights. To him, the Angels weren’t the favorites. They were the ones knocking on the door, looking to prove they belonged.
That mindset became the driving force behind the Angels’ historic run to the 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference crown — the franchise’s first-ever title in the tournament.
Throughout the tournament, the Japanese coach stayed true to this humble approach. In every media appearance, he downplayed expectations — referring to his team as the challengers every chance he got.
Tsuzurabara, a man of few words, rarely gave soundbites. Maybe it was the language barrier. Or maybe he simply preferred letting his team speak for him on the court.
During games, he would often give team captain Remy Palma the floor during timeouts—a quiet show of trust that empowered his players to lead from within.
Even off the court, Tsuzurabara found ways to shine the spotlight on others.
After every match, he made it a point to bring additional players to post-game press conferences — those who weren’t initially selected by the media — just to recognize their effort and give them a share of the credit, whether their impact was seen on the stat sheet or behind the scenes.
That sense of humility and selflessness carried over to the biggest night of his coaching career in the Philippines. In the post-championship press conference, after beating Creamline, the usually reserved mentor let his guard down and shed a tear.
For a man who rarely spoke, that moment said more than any speech ever could.
And when asked how he felt after the championship, having been the ‘challenger’ for the entire conference, he had only a short, heartfelt line to share:
“Too much happy. I can’t believe it.”
It was all he needed to say. The rest? It had already been said with how the Angels played — with grit, with purpose, and with the heart of challengers turned champions.
Coach Koji could not hide his emotions after leading Petro Gazz to the top!
📹 @justinvalencia_ /Tiebreaker Times#PVL2025 pic.twitter.com/7Wy90mMy00
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) April 12, 2025
