MANILA, Philippines - A comely belle who once competed in a major beauty pageant will add glamour and spice in the Philippine Superliga (PSL) Grand Prix which unwraps Oct. 18 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Armed with a killer spike and a gorgeous smile, former Miss Oregon Alaina Bergsma leads the 12 reinforcements who will see action in the country’s premiere inter-club volleyball tournament sanctioned by the Philippine Volleyball Federation (PVF), Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) and the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB).
The 6-foot-3 Bergsma, who was once a candidate in the 2012 Miss USA Pageant and a member of the USA women’s volleyball squad, will connive with setter Erica Adachi of Brazil in powering Petron in its bid for an impressive finish after falling short in the previous conference despite the presence of top rookie Dindin Santiago.
Aside from Bersgma, also expected to provide fireworks is former Cincinnati hitter Bonita Wise, who will team up with former Kansas star Emily Brown for RC Cola.
Wise is no stranger to the Philippines as his father, Francois, played five seasons as a Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) import while his younger brother, Eric, donned the Barako Bull jersey in the recent PBA Governor’s Cup.
Another pretty spiker, Kaylee Manns, will also be back – this time for rookie team Puregold.
The 26-year old Manns, who already has massive international volleyball experience under her belt, saw action in the PSL last year and will suit up for Puregold this time together with former Florida star Kristy Jaeckel.
With Manns unleashing sharp kills for Puregold, a new team will have German sensations Lindsay Stalzer and Sarah Ammerman while Cignal sought help from the Russian tandem of Elena Tarasova and Irina Tarasova.
Generika, meanwhile, will also parade another Russian reinforcement in Natalia Korobkova. She will connive with setter Miyuu Shinohara of Japan, who is the youngest import at only 19 years old.
Ramon Suzara, president and CEO of the organizing Sports Core, said the 12 guest players are among the best and brightest athletes in the international circuit and were acquired through the International Transfer system, which is strictly implemented by the governing body, FIVB.
“The Grand Prix is the other program of the PSL where foreign guest players are invited to join as reinforcement of the teams,” Suzara said. “Not only it raises the level of competition, but it also gives local players a chance to learn from these foreign players who come from countries with good volleyball program like the United States, Brazil, Russia and Japan.”
“We’re looking forward to another tournament of intense action and excitement,” he said.