Creamline’s Valdez hopes to write ‘worthwhile story’ vs Petro Gazz
Alyssa Valdez has been part of Creamline’s dominant history in the PVL.
The Cool Smashers are approaching their 14th championship appearance, and you’d think Valdez would be impervious to Finals pressure by this time.
Think again.
“I feel differently every Finals game,” Valdez told reporters who tailed her late on Thursday evening after Creamline forged a title showdown against the Petro Gazz Angels. “But the jitters, it’s the same. There’s extra nervousness, and I need an extra effort to contain my emotions during Finals.
“That’s one of the things I cannot forget [or] change every [time I play in a] Finals series,” she added.
After helping the Cool Smashers in the All-Filipino Conference at the start of last year, Valdez missed the import-laced Reinforced and Invitational Conferences due to an injury. But with other standouts filling in the gap more than enough, Creamline completed the first-ever league Grand Slam.
This year, Valdez has returned, albeit still not in her top form, to spearhead her crew once again for possibly its sixth All-Filipino crown.
“It’s a different feeling, definitely, because this is my first Finals game back after the injury, so definitely the nervousness and the pressure that I am feeling is also different,” she said.
“After being away from volleyball for how many months, [I noticed] the competition is already different and on a higher level when I got back. Everyone’s improving,” she added.
Brooke’s first
The Angels are the best example of that much higher level of competitiveness in the league. Petro Gazz is one of the three teams that have won titles in the PVL.
The Angels have won two Reinforced Conference crowns and have added Filipino American hitter Brooke Van Sickle to their roster. For Van Sickle, this would mark her first shot at a PVL title. And the Angels are hoping that with the potent scorer around, they can finally add an all-Filipino title to their hardware collection.
Valdez, however, is out to make the most of her comeback—and that could be a big problem for Petro Gazz’s plans.
“The story is not yet done. But I think it’s gonna be real hard work going to the last few chapters of this book but definitely, hopefully it will be worthwhile,” Valdez said.
