Written by Theodore Jurado | Photo: PVL
NXLED emerged as one of the biggest movers during the Premier Volleyball League’s conference break, securing most of PetroGazz’s champion team core, including three-time league MVP Brooke Van Sickle.
The Chameleons are ready to go in the 10-team All-Filipino Conference, which opens on Saturday at the Playtime Filoil Centre.
“It’s still good, you know new adjustments. It’s a combination of our two families and it’s very good. We are very excited for this conference,” Van Sickle said during Wednesday’s pre-conference presser.
Other Angels, two-time MVP Myla Pablo and two-time Finals MVP MJ Phillips, rising setter Jules Tolentino, Jonah Sabete, Djanel Cheng, Nicole Tiamzon, Bang Pineda, Ranya Musa, AA Adolfo and Jellie Tempiatura, are now on board giving the clun built-in chemistry it needed to contend for the championship. They played huge roles in PetroGazz’s Reinforced Conference title run late last year.
The additions of middle blockers Aduke Ogunsanya, and Aby Maraño, along with Joyme Cagande, further strengthened the roster’s balance across all positions. Ogunsanya is formerly from Choco Mucho, while Maraño, and Cagande are from Chery Tiggo.
Nxled’s longest-tenured player Chiara Permentilla, together with last season’s first-round pick Lyann De Guzman, and holdovers EJ Laure-Cariño, Mayang Nuique, Lucille Almonte, Krich Macaslang, and Jovelyn Fernandez are ready for their roles under coach Ettore Guidetti.
The league’s new format also ensures that every match matters. After a single round-robin elimination round, no team will be eliminated immediately. The top four clubs advance to the qualifying round, while the remaining six go through a play-in stage.
In the qualifying round, the No. 1 seed faces No. 4, and No. 2 meets No. 3. The winners earn direct semifinals spots, while the losers face the winners of the play-in. The play-in divides the six teams into two groups: No. 6, 7, and 10 in one group, and No. 5, 8, and 9 in the other. The fifth- and sixth-ranked teams wait for the winner of their respective groups, giving lower-ranked squads a fighting chance.
If a team sweeps the elimination round, it will go straight to the semifinals, with the fourth seed automatically awaiting the play-in winner. The semifinals will then adopt a single round-robin format, with a rubber match to break any ties. The championship and bronze medal matches will be decided in a best-of-three series.
Nxled first opponent is Farm Fresh on Tuesday at the San Juan arena.
