Petron belles upbeat in Asian club volley bid

MANILA, Philippines - Hopes are high as reigning Philippine Superliga Grand Prix champion Petron leaves today to banner the country in the 16th AVC Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship at the Ha Nam Competition Hall in Phu Ly, Vietnam starting this weekend.

Fresh from a flawless campaign in the recent PSL All-Filipino Conference, the Blaze Spikers hope to bring their A-game to the international stage as they battle the region’s top club teams in the tourney that offers a berth to the FIVB World Women’s Club Volleyball Championship next year.

But the Blaze Spikers will face a formidable challenge right in the classification stage as they are stacked in Group B together with Islamic Azad University of Iran, 4.25 Sports Club of North Korea, Zhejiang of China and powerhouse Hisamitsu Seiyaku Springs of Japan, the two-time champion which will bring back lefty spiker Miyu Nagaoka, Risa Shinabe and Nana Iwasaka.

Group A, meanwhile, consists of Thong Tin Lienvietpostbank of the host country, Taiwan Power of Chinese Taipei, Zhetyssu of Kazakhstan and Southeast Asian favorite Bangkok Glass with Pleumjit Thinkaow, Wilavan Apinyapong, Jarasporn Bandasak and rising star Pornpon Guedpard setting the plays.