For the third straight year, Creamline’s bid for the first-ever Grand Slam in Philippine volleyball history met with adversity.
In the 2022 Reinforced Conference, a stunning four-set loss to Cignal foiled their first Grand Slam attempt and ended their bid for an eighth consecutive PVL Finals appearance.
In last year’s Invitational Conference, the Cool Smashers suffered a heart-wrenching five-set defeat to Japan-based team Kurashiki in the winner-take-all Final.
In the recently concluded Reinforced and Invitational Conferences, Creamline missed the services of Tots Carlos and Alyssa Valdez due to injuries.
They also lost Jema Galanza for the majority of both tournaments because of her responsibilities with Alas Pilipinas.
But as the saying goes, the third time’s the charm for interim team captain Michele Gumabao and Creamline, as they finally achieved the historic Grand Slam.
Aside from claiming her 10th championship with the winningest PVL ball club, the 5-foot-9 opposite spiker’s efficient performance was rewarded as the Invitational Conference MVP.
(C) PVL Images
“All of these [awards] say that the team just really trusts each other and tiwala rin talaga kami kay coach [Sherwin],” Gumabao shared.
“Buo ang tiwala namin kay coach, buo ang tiwala namin sa isa’t isa na kaya namin iangat ang bawat isa anytime na may mahihirapan, anytime na may nagstra-struggle.”
However, Gumabao and the Cool Smashers had to dig deep to finally secure the coveted Grand Slam.
Despite being limited to five points due to the presence of Galanza, the La Salle standout’s leadership paid dividends.
Creamline fought back from a 1-2 set deficit to secure the Grand Slam and their first Invitational title in two years.
Their comeback would not have been possible without the Cool Smashers’ championship pedigree and experience, along with their belief in each other and in the system of decorated head coach Sherwin Meneses.
“We were down two sets to one, hindi nawalan ng tiwala. Hindi nawalan ng pag-asa and talagang nagtulungan lang talaga,” the 32-year-old spiker from La Salle said.
“Nandoon yung experience pero kailangan pa rin talagang pagtrabahuhan. The experience will just help you calm your nerves.”
