FOTON has drafted four Philippine Superliga stars as additional reinforcements when it competes in the AVC Asian Women’s Club Championship in Manila from Sept 3 to 11.
Foton team manager Alvin Lu on Wednesday said Aby Marano of F2 Logistics, Jen Reyes of Petron, and Jovelyn Gonzaga and Rachel Anne Daquis of RC Cola-Army will infuse talent and power into their lineup in preparation for the highly competitive battles of this prestigious continental tourney.
The four stars are tipped to provide valuable experience on the floor as Marano, Reyes and Daquis were part of the Petron squad which saw action in this tourney last year.
Gonzaga is a seasoned international campaigner, who skippered the Nationals in the 28th Southeast Asian Games last year.
They have already reported for training and will join the Tornadoes when they open a training camp in Bangkok right after the ongoing PSL All-Filipino Conference.
“Their experience in the international competition will be a major boost to our team,” said Lu, adding that coach Villet Ponce-de Leon is leaving no stone unturned in coming up with a very good performance.
“This shows how serious we are in forming a very competitive team. We will be playing before our countrymen, we want to make sure that our team will put up a gallant stand.”
The four PSL stars will be joined by American imports Ariel Usher and Lindsay Stalzer, while locals Jaja Santiago, Angeli Araneta, Patty Orendain and Ivy Perez comprise the nucleus of the 18-woman pool.
Also in the team are Bia General, Rhea Dimaculangan, Maika Ortiz, Kara Acevedo, EJ Laure, Cherry Rondina and Carol Cerveza.
The team will be formally launched in a press conference on July 22.
“We will trim the lineup to the final 12 right after we arrive from Bangkok,” Lu said. “So we expect everybody to show up and give their best because representing the country is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
The Tornadoes are in a relatively light bracket in Pool A, together with Lien Viet Post Bank of Vietnam and the Hong Kong national team.
But things get more difficult from there as they have to overcome Asian heavyweights like reigning champion Bangkok Glass of Thailand, April 25 of North Korea, Sarmayeh Bank of Iran, Hisamitsu Springs of Japan, Zhetysu Almaty of Kazakhstan, Jakarta Electric PLN of Indonesia, Taiwan Power of Chinese Taipei and Bayi Army of China before winning the crown.
The Malaysians will also compete, but they have yet to formally inform the organizers the team they will field in.
“We really have to put our best foot forward because this tourney is an Asian championship,” Lu said. “It is not a walk in the park.”