Sisi Rondina feels determined to elevate her game as she aims to propel Choco Mucho to greater heights in the upcoming 2024 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference, scheduled to commence on February 20.
Rondina and the Flying Titans achieved a significant breakthrough in the previous conference, reaching their first-ever finals appearance in franchise history, albeit falling short to sister team Creamline in the best-of-three finale.
“Sana, sana kasi maraming mga instances na pwedeng off. Maraming pangyayari na hindi natin alam pero siyempre mas fino-focus ko talaga kung saan talaga ako weak, ‘yun nga ‘yung receive ko. So, unti-unti nagi-improve naman. Sana, sana may improvement,” expressed Rondina during the PVL press conference at the Discovery Suites last Wednesday.
The reigning All-Filipino Conference MVP emphasized that she is not setting any expectations this time around, especially with almost the entire PVL field strengthening their rosters for the upcoming tournament.
Rondina, however, pledged to work hard and adhere to head coach Dante Alinsunurin’s system, aiming to contribute significantly to Choco Mucho’s title pursuit.
“Expectations wala kasi ang daming sumali ngayon. Sabi nga, bilog ‘yung bola. Hindi natin malalaman kung ano ‘yung takbo ng conference ngayon pero sisiguraduhin po namin na magta-trabaho kami at siyempre ipapakita po namin kung ano ‘yung mga itinuturo ni Coach Dante (Alinsunurin),” said Rondina.
“Hindi namin iniisip ‘yun, actually, hindi naman dapat iniisip ‘yun. Pero sabi ko lagi kaming nagtatrabaho, papakita po namin kung paano kami mag-training at paano po namin maipe-perform mga tinuturo ni Coach Dante,” she added.
Choco Mucho also strengthened its roster with the addition of Mars Alba, Mean Mendrez, Bia General, and Royse Tubino, compensating for the loss of veterans Bea De Leon and Denden Lazaro-Revilla, as well as emerging opposite spiker Caitlyn Viray, all of whom played pivotal roles in their run to the finals last year.
“Happy naman po ako sa kanila kasi mas mag-go-grow pa sila sa team na pinasukan nila. Wish ko lang sa kanila na mag-iingat. Siyempre, nalulungkot ako pero okay lang kasi alam kong ikakasaya nila ‘yun at choice nila ‘yun.”