SEA Games-bound Filipina spikers go full throttle in Brazil training

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine women’s volleyball team has intensified its training in Barueri, Brazil with an eye at a first medal finish in almost two decades in the Hanoi Southeast Asian Games set May 12 to 23.

“The goal is a podium finish,” said Tonyboy Liao, a Philippine National Volleyball Federation executive board member and national team commission chairman who heads the delegation in the Brazil training camp backed by the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Rebisco, PLDT and Taguig City.

The PNVF has brought together some of the best and brightest in the sport including reigning Premier Volleyball League Open Conference Finals MVP Alyssa Valdez and Jaja Santiago to shoot for at least a bronze, the country’s first since snaring a bronze in the 2005 Manila SEA Games.

And, if the stars aligned, a possible first gold medal by the country since capturing one in the 2003 Singapore edition of the biennial meet.

National coach Jorge Edson Souza de Brito, a Brazilian, thinks the country is on track on that target.

“We always add something new each time we go into practice. I can see the improvement day by day, so when we play the next match, we’ll become better,’’ said de Brito after the conclusion of their Day 3 workouts in their two-week training camp.

The Nationals are scheduled for another tune-up game Tuesday against a Brazilian club team.

The other members of the team are Jema Galanza, Mylene Paat, Dawn Macandili, Ces Molina, Kat Tolentino, Kath Arado, Majoy Baron, Riri Meneses and newly called setter Kyle Negrito, who replaced a hurting Deanna Wong, among others.

“We did tactics in the morning and put all the guys together in the afternoon, but we used only five players on each side,’’ said de Brito. “With five (players), you will do more using less guys. They have to move more, react more and cover more space than usual.”