MANILA, June 27 ------ Alyssa Valdez is expected to be back in action when Creamline opens its title defense in the Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference on Tuesday against the Chery Tiggo Crossovers. The Creamline-Chery Tiggo showdown caps the opening-day triple-header at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan, with the conference set to be opened by the match between Farm Fresh and F2 Logistics at 1:30 p.m. Cignal and Petro Gazz will face off at 4:00 p.m. before the Cool Smashers take on the Crossovers at 6:30 p.m.
The Invitational Conference features 13 teams -- the most in any conference. Eleven local teams have been divided into two groups, with the top two finishers advancing to the semifinals where they will be joined by two foreign guest clubs. Group A is composed of Creamline, Chery Tiggo, PLDT, Akari, and newcomer Gerflor. Group B will have Petro Gazz, F2 Logistics, Choco Mucho, Cignal and newcomers Farm Fresh and Foton.
"The level of competition will definitely be higher this conference," said Valdez, who missed the entirety of the All-Filipino Conference as she recovered from a knee injury. "Yung team na healthy all throughout the season will make a big difference this conference – lahat pantay-pantay na talaga, including yung support ng mga teams," she added.
The Cool Smashers added Bernadeth Pons in the break between conferences, though other teams have also beefed up their rosters -- including the Crossovers who loaded up with UST’s Eya Laure and Imee Hernandez, and the National U trio of Princess Robles, Jennifer Nierva, and Joyme Cagande. "We are very excited if you may say so but it really entails a lot of responsibilities to match and manage the expectations of many," said Chery Tiggo head coach Aaron Velez. "Overall, this is an opportunity to start developing a younger era of talents for the long term."
Source: news.abs-cbn.com
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