MANILA, Philippines – Petron may have a high-powered roster capable of defending its crown, but for skipper Frances Molina, they are competing without any pressure whatsoever.
Molina, who missed her national team assignments due to a recurring stress fracture injury, will be at the helm when the Blaze Spikers defend their throne in the Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference.
They were off to a flying start when they crushed the young Cocolife squad, 25-18, 25-15, 25-18, in the opening salvo, but their mettle would surely be tested against six other clubs.
Smart, for one, is parading an intact roster capable of giving the Blaze Spikers a run for their money.
The core of the Giga Hitters competed under the banner of BaliPure in the rival league and clinched the title in the Open Conference last year.
Bitter rival F2 Logistics is also a force to be reckoned with while Cignal and Foton re-tooled their respective rosters in a bid to knock the crown off Petron’s head.
But Molina insisted that they are competing without any pressure.
“Although we’re the defending champions, we’re competing without any pressure. We’re just here to enjoy the game,” said Molina, who was part of the Petron side that swept its way to an All-Filipino Conference title in 2015 together with stars Rachel Anne Daquis, Dindin Manabat and Aby Marano.
“We’re always prepared for every opponent and we’re ready to give our best shot every game.”
The Blaze Spikers are set to face Generika-Ayala on Tuesday night.
Head coach Shaq Delos Santos said the Lifesavers would not be easy foes as they displayed airtight defense in their previous game against Foton.
Prized liberos Kath Arado and Bia General will be at the helm of their vaunted airtight defense as well as beach volleyball aces Bang Pineda, Patty Orendain and Fiola Ceballos.
Former University Athletic Association of the Philippines Best Blocker Ria Meneses is tipped to assert her defensive prowess at the net together with Mikaela Lopez and Marlyn Llagoso.
“We can’t take this team for granted. We know that they have an elite defense so we have to be at our best on both ends if we want to prevail over them,” said Delos Santos, who mentored the national squad in the Asian Games and the AVC Asian Women’s Cup last September.
Delos Santos said it’s still a long way to go as far as defending their crown is concerned.
“We have to take it one game at a time,” he said. “It’s still a long way to go.”