Papatchaya Phontham etched her name in Premier Volleyball League history on Tuesday night, becoming the first player from a guest team to win the league’s Most Valuable Player award.
The 20-year-old opposite hitter capped her breakout campaign by helping EST Cola capture the 2026 PVL Invitational Conference title, with the Thai club beating Nxled in the championship match at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
EST Cola became just the second guest team to claim the Invitational crown, following Japan’s Kurashiki Ablaze, which ruled the tournament in 2023.
Phontham entered the finals as one of the league’s most productive offensive weapons. She ranked second in scoring after the preliminary round with 97 points, built on 84 attacks, seven aces, and six blocks.
She also converted 35.74 percent of her attacks, good for third in spiking efficiency, while her 0.37 aces per set placed her fourth in the service category.
Her all-around showing earned her the Best Opposite Spiker award alongside the league’s top individual honor.
Nxled’s Jonah Sabete-Escamillan and PLDT’s Savi Davison, meanwhile, were recognized as the Best Outside Spikers.
Davison topped the preliminary-round scoring charts with 135 points while ranking second in spiking efficiency at 37.97 percent. She also averaged 0.65 blocks per set, sixth-best in the league.
The PLDT star was equally effective in the back row, placing sixth in reception efficiency at 41.92 percent and seventh in digs with 3.00 per set.
Escamillan finished fifth in scoring with 84 points and also ranked fifth in both blocks and aces, averaging 0.65 blocks and 0.35 aces per set. She posted a 47.62-percent reception efficiency, the third-best mark in the league.
Davison collected her third selection to the All-Premier Team, while Escamillan earned the distinction for the first time.
Creamline’s Jaja Santiago-Minowa and Nxled’s MJ Phillips took home the Best Middle Blocker honors.
Minowa finished third in scoring with 92 points, while Phillips ranked seventh with 79. The former also topped the league with 18 blocks, while Phillips registered 14.
It was Minowa’s second Best Middle Blocker award and Phillips’ third All-Premier Team selection.
Nxled’s Gel Cayuna and PLDT’s Kath Arado completed the individual award winners.
Cayuna secured her sixth Best Setter award after averaging 5.50 assists per set, good for third in the category. She also contributed 27 points throughout the preliminary round.
Arado, meanwhile, continued her dominance as the league’s top defensive specialist, claiming her seventh Best Libero award. She led all players in digs with an outstanding 5.70 average per set, well ahead of the second-ranked player’s 3.43 mark.
With Phontham leading the way, EST Cola’s championship run ended with the Thai club making history both as a team and through its young star.
