Tasked with stepping into bigger roles following the departure of key stars, Judith Abil and Ishie Lalongisip continue to embrace the pressure of leading Cignal in the 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference.
With ace spiker Vanie Gandler struggling to convert points, Abil and Lalongisip carried the scoring load on Thursday night, leading the HD Spikers to a dominant 25-12, 25-15, 25-17 victory over Capital1 at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
The rookie out of Adamson University contributed 13 points, 12 of which came from attacks, while Abil, who has had a career resurgence since joining Cignal last year, also finished with 13 points, including 10 from attacks, two aces, and one block.
“Ine-embrace ko lang po ‘yung role na binigay sa akin ni Coach Shaq (delos Santos). Parang siguro ‘yung pressure laging nandiyan, ine-entertain ko lang siya as positive,” said Lalongisip after the win.
“Like everyday sa training tinatiyaga ko lang din kahit nandoon ‘yung factor ng pagod, pero alam ko at the end of the day may natututunan ako sa ensayo namin,” she added.
(C) PVL Images
Abil, meanwhile, expressed that she is simply repaying the trust placed in her by the coaching staff, led by head coach Shaq delos Santos, by giving her best effort in every game and constantly working to improve her performance.
“Sa akin naman po, kung gaano (kalaki) ‘yung binigay na tiwala ng coaches, ni Coach Shaq sa akin, yun yung ilalagay ko rin sa sarili ko yung tiwala sa sarili ko. Trabaho lang, tiyaga lang sa training,” said the former University of the East standout.
Lalongisip is currently averaging 13.6 points per game as the starting opposite hitter, filling in for team captain and former MVP Ces Molina. Meanwhile, Abil contributes 7.25 points per game off the bench.
“Mag-score lang po, ‘yun din kasi kulang nung last game din po na puro na lang open ‘yung nagso-score. ‘Yung dito sa utility hindi nakaka-score, ‘yun din ‘yung sabi ni coach na tulong din sa team kapag laro,” said Abil, who was tasked with scoring more by delos Santos.
Delos Santos praised the two players for stepping up and meeting the team’s needs, especially at a time when they have lost not only their top scorer in Molina but also a reliable middle blocker in Riri Meneses.
“Thank you Lord, syempre sa panalo. ‘Yun talaga ‘yung kailangan namin especially ngayon sa status namin. Syempre proud sa team, nama-maximize namin ‘yung mga tao namin, ‘yung mga strengths, especially dito sa katabi kong dalawa,” said delos Santos.
“Sobrang nagwo-work hard talaga sila sa training. But of course, ‘yung mga leaders namin sa team, sila Dawn (Catindig), sila Vanie (Gandler), and kay Judith (Abil), ‘yun nga sabi ko kailangan tumulong talaga siya sa attacks.”
