Philippine women's volleyball squad moves training base to Bantangas

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine women’s volleyball team will move its training camp from Laoag, Ilocos Norte to Batangas on Friday in preparation for the Asian Senior Women’s Championship slated August 29 to September 5 in San Fernando, Pampanga.

There, they will be joined on August 1 by Brazilian national team coach Jorge Edson Souza de Brito, who arrived Wednesday night from Brazil but had to undergo quarantine until July 31.

Upon arrival, Souza de Brito is expected to name the additional four players the 16 that were earlier identified to comprise the national team seeing action not just in the San Fernando tilt but also the Hanoi Southeast Asian Games that was reset in November this year to early next year.

Creamline’s Alyssa Valdez and Jia Morado, Kalei Mau and Dawn Macandili are the four who are tipped to make the pool.

Majority of the team, among them Eya Laure, Kamille Cal, Faith Nisperos, Ivy Lacsina, Mhicaela Belen, Alyssa Solomon, Imee Hernandez, Jenniver Nieva and Bernadette Pepito, have trained in Laoag for three weeks under Jorge de Birto's assistant Odjie Mamon.

It is not certain though if the other members — Jaja Santiago, Mylene Paat, Riri Meneses, Dell Palomata — who are playing in the ongoing Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Open Conference in Bacarra, Ilocos Norte could join the squad since the league finishes on Aug. 21 the longest.

If they do, they will have more than a week to prepare along with the current roster.

There were reports that Abi Marano and Majoy Baron could join the Batangas bubble since their mother club F2 Logistics has withdrawn from playing in the PVL this conference.

The country is bracketed in Pool A alongside Kazakhstan, Chinese Taipei and Uzbekistan in the event that drew participation from eight countries.