SWEET SEVEN
Petro Gazz’s current hot streak in the PVL All-Filipino Conference can be credited to three things: translating what they do in practice on the court, communication and, well, donuts.
“We have more open communication now [so] when we see a problem, we’ll talk about it immediately … probably also because of the donuts that coach [Koji Tsuzurabara] brings … every game he buys donuts,” setter Djanel Cheng, laughing, said.
“We have a feng shui,” added captain Remy Palma. “It’s among the things we believe [as routine] with coach Koji buying the donuts for us, like five boxes every game.”
The Angels’ current streak, however, is no joke. They’ve won seven straight games, counting Tuesday’s 25-19, 25-18, 25-9 trouncing of Capital1 on Tuesday at PhilSports Arena.
“The coaches always remind us to start [working] in practice so we can carry over all that process we are working on to the game,” Palma said in Filipino. “We always give time for the young ones to express their concerns and from there we’ll find a way.”
After rising to an 8-1 record, Petro Gazz is one of two teams that have an inside track on the top seeding, one that will pit the team against the bottom-ranked qualifier in the knockout round.
But with the other team being powerhouse Creamline, the Angels know their task is far from done.
Efficient numbers
“The wins will not be given. It’s still up to us how we’ll work for them in practice as well as in games to come,” Palma said. “It’s always a ‘one-game-at-a-time’ mindset for us. We aren’t looking too far ahead to the future games because that can jumble your mind.”
“It’s good to be here with that standing but of course it comes with the duty to continue working because the coming games aren’t going to get easier. It’ll only get more difficult especially now that the next round is near [and] the level of play will increase,” she added.
Petro Gazz’s last assignment is hapless Galeries Tower.
The Angels’ gunners continued delivering efficient numbers for the team on Tuesday. Myla Pablo and Brooke Van Sickle fueled Petro Gazz with 14 and 13 points, respectively, with their teammates also able to contribute under the playmaking of Cheng, who distributed 13 excellent sets.
“We really need open communication. [W]hen the communication fails we won’t be able to read each other,” Palma said. “And we also cannot build chemistry [without communication].”
