BY ABBY TORALBA
AFTER getting the job done, Petro Gazz is still hungry for more.
The Angels underlined their domination of the import-spiced tilt by turning back Cignal 25-17, 22-25, 25-12, 25-22 last Tuesday night to keep the PVL Reinforced Conference crown.
American import Lindsey Vander Weide showed the way in the finals along with local aces Myla Pablo, Remy Palma, Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, MJ Phillips, Djanel Cheng, and Shiela Pineda.
The belles of coach Rald Ricafort atoned for their runner-up finish in this year’s Open Conference while settling for sixth in the Invitationals.
“Siyempre, sobrang saya lalo doon sa mga players na gusto talagang i-alay iyong game so siyempre with Nang (Aiza), Chie (Saet), iyong mga ate ng team and iyon nga, knowing iyong sacrifices na ginawa namin so sulit naman iyong pagkakakuha ng championship,” Ricafort said. “I-work on pa rin iyong system na ibinibigay doon sa locals. Mabigat talaga iyong laban sa All-Filipino given sa ibang teams na masyadong — parang all-star talaga like Creamline, F2 (Logistics) so unti-unti kahit nakukuha naman namin iyong finals nitong mga nakaraan.
“Pumangit lang talaga noong last two conferences, pero nandoon pa rin naman kumbaga konting trabaho pa talaga siguro and siguro soon makaka-sungkit naman kami pati sa All-Filipino,” he added.
Vander Wiede, who expressed that she’s happy to have another stint with Petro Gazz, was hailed as the finals MVP and Best Foreign Guest Player of the conference.
“It feels great. I didn’t know how the awards worked at all. I didn’t know there was a finals MVP, and I didn’t know it was gonna happen,” said the former Oregon Ducks player.
“So, when my name was called, I mean it’s a great feeling. The finals is the most important part of the season, and I’m glad that I was able to help my team win this, so it feels really good. I’m feeling great,” she said. “I’m so happy to do it with this team, this is one of the most hard-working teams I’ve ever been on, and I think we really showed that in our finals run.
