Volleybelles’ grind continues

MIKA Reyes and the national women’s volleyball team are back from a 12-day training in Japan. ROMAN PROSPERO

The national women’s volleyball team is set to arrive on Friday evening, carrying all the lessons they gained from its 12-day training camp in Tokyo.

But head coach Shaq de los Santos stressed that the grind continues entering the final stretch of their preparation for the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

“We have some improvements, but it doesn’t mean that everything is now okay,” said Delos Santos, whose wards are set to arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 around 7:30 p.m. via Philippine Airlines Flight PR421.

“We still have to continue working until we reach our peak in the SEA Games. We still have some problems with our reception. We need to polish it through scrimmages and constant training.”

The Nationals, who are led by mainstays Mika Reyes, Aby Maraño, Kalei Mau, Dawn Macandili and Majoy Baron are heavily expected to break their 14-year medal slump in the prestigious 11-nation conclave.

That’s why the Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. and the Philippine Sports Commission sent them to a 12-day training in Tokyo, where they faced various club and university teams in preparation for the biennial meet.

After the camp, they would join the Philippine Superliga (PSL) Super Cup, where they would face a pair of selection teams as well as the varsity team of Tsukuba University, the reigning champion of the All-Japan Intercollegiate League.

Delos Santos said they plan to take advantage of that golden opportunity.

“Good thing we have a tournament when we get back in Manila, where we would face a Japanese team,” said Delos Santos shortly before wrapping up their Tokyo camp.

“Hopefully, we can show all the lessons we gained and display the improvements we had. We are entering the final stretch of our preparation and this is the time to show what we got.”

Delos Santos said the condition of the team may be far from perfect, but the improvement is already getting obvious.

“I think we’re about 70 percent prepared,” said Delos Santos, who won multiple titles with Petron in the PSL.

“Of course, I don’t want to come up with an assurance. But all I can say is that the improvement is there and we’re on the right track.”

“We plan to continue this even until after the SEA Games. Getting better is not an overnight process. We really have to spend a lot of time and sacrifice to reach our goal.”

The team will take a break on Saturday before training again on Sunday. Then, they will attend the Super Cup press conference and have a brief scrimmage on Monday before marching to battle on Tuesday.