For Rachel Anne Daquis, age is just a number.

The comely veteran once again flashed her vintage form when she led Farm Fresh past Capital1 in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference late Tuesday at the Philsports Arena.

Making a return to competitive volleyball after more than a year away, the 37-year-old Daquis was instrumental in the Foxies’ thrilling five-set triumph as she sealed the victory with a decisive crosscourt kill to finish with 19 points built on 17 spikes and two blocks.

“Actually, I struggled during the first and second sets, but I became more motivated because I’m here to help them, not to bring us down,” said Daquis, a former Far Eastern University standout and a many-time member of the national squad, following their 18-25, 21-25, 26-24, 25-19, 15-12 triumph.

“This was our best game because we really needed to win today, but I know we can still do better. As long as we don’t stop learning and adjusting, we’ll improve even more. I think I just need to focus on how I can contribute further.”

The victory allowed Farm Fresh to close the preliminaries with a 5-6 record and secure sixth place with 16 points.

Still, Daquis reminded her team that the battle is far from over.

“This is a good start toward qualifying, so we’re aiming to improve our ranking even further. We’ve achieved this, but we will never stop because, for us, we’re not solid yet — but we’re getting there,” Daquis said.

“We’re still lacking because if we were truly okay, we wouldn’t have reached the fifth set. So from the start, we need to come out strong. This means we still have room for improvement, but there is progress. That’s what matters — that we’re moving up one step at a time.”

Farm Fresh head coach Benson Bocboc lauded his players’ resilience, noting how they fought through adversity to secure the win.

“It’s really great because the players we were counting on were able to return. In the first two sets, our reception was completely off — nothing at all,” Bocboc said.

“Other players really had to step up, some didn’t even leave the court, while others were cramping up, but they kept fighting.”