It’s a long and hard journey, worth the trek as Petro Gazz once again soared high to reclaim the 2025 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference throne.
Three years of waiting for redemption ended when veteran winger Myla Pablo pounded the championship point that went through ZUS Coffee’s wall and landed down the line last Sunday in the winner-take-all final at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
After the smoke of the unexpected finale cleared, the Angels were the ones left standing and celebrating in triumph following a much-deserved, 21-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-20, decision over the hard-fighting Thunderbelles. Petro Gazz reached its destination as queen of the import-laden tournament once again — the franchise’s third overall and now most in the league.
“I mean, it's awesome. I said in the beginning, let's run it back and I wouldn't say I was half-joking, but it's like you never know what's going to happen,” American import Lindsey Vander Weide said after a successful return since powering the Angels into the 2022 edition championship.
“And just the fact that we had such a weird start and a weird middle of the season, for us to pull it out and beat some of the top teams in the end just shows how much grit this team has. And we knew we had it all along, it just came out at the end. So, it was awesome to deal with this team,” she added.
Petro Gazz’s run wasn’t a smooth one. In fact, not many considered the Angels as the strongest contender in the tournament despite bringing Vander Weide back, given that they are still in transition with new head coach Gary Van Sickle.
The Angels ended in the bottom three in the first round of the preliminaries and ended up as the fifth seed in the quarterfinals after the second round.
Petro Gazz had to go through the proverbial eye of the needle in the playoffs, running into an early collision course with last year’s champion Creamline.
Vander Weide tweaked an ankle in the opening set against the Cool Smashers and was barely a factor when she returned in the fourth frame. It was Pablo who rose to the occasion and saw the Angels through in dethroning Creamline.
Then, it was Brooke Van Sickle’s turn to shine in the semifinal as Petro Gazz eliminated last season’s runner-up Akari in a five-set thriller.
Against the second-seeded ZUS Coffee, the Angels displayed a collective team effort to recover from a set down and complete their championship run.
“It's amazing. I think, how Lindsey said it, we had a very rocky start, and I think we all kind of had to come collectively together and definitely, it was a do-or-die situation for us. And I'm really proud of our team for just having that grit and staying locked in and focusing when it really matters,” said Brooke Van Sickle, who also collected her third Conference Most Valuable Player award.
“And, I mean, it just goes to show, it doesn't matter how you start in a season, it just matters how you finish. So, I'm really proud of everyone,” added the prized winger, who was also named 1st Best Outside Spiker.
Looking back, Brooke Van Sickle, emphasized how everyone in the team played their respective roles well, being on the same page all the way and stepping up when needed.
“I think everyone came in such clutch moments throughout the season. And, I mean, we had some rough patches. Lindsey sprained her ankle. She was sick and we just, you know, trying to figure out what was cohesive and going to have good chemistry on the court with the new coaches,” she said.
“So, it was a lot of ups and downs and things we had to push through and figure out and I'm just super proud of everyone.”
Petro Gazz started the year strong with a breakthrough All-Filipino Conference conquest and capped it with a stronger finish.
Truly, it’s the year of the Angels.