The 2025 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference title may have slipped from its hands, but ZUS Coffee gained something valuable in its pursuit for glory: championship experience.

A novice on the biggest stage of the competition, the second-seeded Thunderbelles crumbled under the bright lights of the finals and fell victim to the battle-tested and veteran-laden Petro Gazz.

ZUS Coffee had the weapons in Best Foreign Guest Player American Anna DeBeer, last year’s top overall pick and Alas Pilipinas star Thea Gagate, AC Miner, top playmaker Cloanne Mondonedo and veterans Jovelyn Gonzaga, Chinnie Arroyo and libero Alyssa Eroa on its side. However, the Angels saw how raw the Thunderbelles were and exploited it.

“Experience probably would answer that question,” Thunderbelles head coach Jerry Yee said when asked about the biggest factor that led his team to fold to No. 5 seed Petro Gazz, 25-21, 26-28, 23-25, 20-25, in the winner-take-all finale on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“Because apparently, it’s not that easy when you’re in that stage, and then you try to handle things. People could see that we have the capability (of winning), but you can’t discount that there’s self-doubt,” he added.

“Hopefully, we could draw some lessons from this.”

ZUS Coffee, which entered the championship match with just one defeat in 10 outings, went out swinging to take the opening set and was even looking poised to snatch the second frame only to get outhustled by the Angels in the closing stretch.

The Thunderbelles from there felt the championship pressure as momentum shifted to the side of the now three-time Reinforced Conference champion Petro Gazz.

“We just realized and proved that we still have a very young and inexperienced team. It manifested on the final game day. We started to collapse in the second set. So, we could say that we still have a long way to go compared to other, more experienced teams,” Yee said.

“The nerves were there, resulting in errors and jitters, probably. For a young team, you may not notice it at first, but the championship pressure will eventually get into you.”

Still, the businessman Frank Lao-owned ZUS Coffee exceeded expectations for a team that went 0-19 in its inaugural season just a year ago.

The conference also saw the likes of Miner and Mondonedo rising as Rookie of the Conference and Best Setter, respectively.

“Of course, there’s sadness and regrets, but we’re still celebrating, and we’re happy for what we have achieved,” Yee said.