RC Cola-Army stars Rachel Anne Daquis and Jovelyn Gonzaga officially became the first two members of the Philippine Superliga team that will compete in the FIVB World Club Women’s Championship in Manila from Oct. 18 to 23.
No less than PSL president Ramon “Tats” Suzara Thursday made the announcement, saying Daquis and Gonzaga possess talents to represent the country in the world stage following an impressive performance during the tryout last week.
Suzara handed jackets and golden tickets to the Lady Troopers signifying their qualification in the prestigious tourney where seven of the world’s best club teams from Brazil, Japan, Turkey, Switzerland and Thailand will be seeing action.
They will be formally presented to the media in the tournament’s official launch on July 12.
“Rachel and Jovelyn are two of the country’s best players,” said Suzara, the chairman of the marketing and development committee of the Asian Volleyball Confederation and a member of the International Volleyball Federation.
“That’s why it is only fitting to invite them to be part of the team that will compete in the best club tournament in the world. We welcome Rachel and Jovelyn on board and we hope that they will do everything to make us proud.”
Daquis is a veteran international campaigner and a former PSL Most Valuable Player, whose deadly combination of power and beauty turned her into an instant fan-favorite.
The same way goes for the left-handed Gonzaga, who donned the national colors in the beach volleyball tournament in the 26th Southeast Asian Games in Palembang before skippering the national team in the 28th SEA Games in Singapore last year.
With Daquis and Gonzaga safely in, only five slots are left at stake for local players while seven slots will be given to imports. The PSL will start introducing the remaining members of the team next week.
Aside from the PSL All-Star team, also competing are Rexona Ades of Brazil, Bangkok Glass of Thailand, Volero Zurich of Switzerland, Hisamitsu Springs of Japan, Eczacibasi VitrA Istanbul and VakifBank Istanbul of Turkey and Pomi Casalmaggiore of Italy.