United VC stands out with long-sleeve kits 

MANILA, Philippines – United VC pulled off a shocker when it showed up in purple long-sleeve jersey against Cignal in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix last Thursday.

The jersey was an eye-candy.

Social media was buzzing as fans compared it to what women’s volleyball players are wearing in the US National Collegiate Athletic Association.

And with United VC parading four former US NCAA standouts in Kalei Mau, Alohi Robbins-Hardy, Tai Manu Olevao and Yaasmeen Bedart-Ghani, netizens speculated that the inspiration was derived from their glory days in college.

Sideliners believed that it was a lucky charm of sorts as United VC ran away with an impressive straight-set victory over Cignal when their jersey made its debut.

But head coach Joshua Ylaya has a simple explanation.

“We just want to be different,” said Ylaya, whose wards are slowly getting known for the sleek design of their jersey and fast and furious performance on the court.

“We already saw sleeveless and sleeved jersey in local volleyball scene. So we decided to pull off something different by having our team wear long sleeved jersey that is similar to what they were wearing back in the States.”

Ylaya said their long-sleeved jersey would resurface when they face unbeaten Petron this Tuesday.

It’s going to be a crucial battle as Petron would be seeking its fifth consecutive win while United VC wants to continue its soar after posting two wins in their first four games.

But Ylaya has something more in mind.

“That's the time we’ll see if our new jersey is really our lucky charm,” he said with a chuckle.

“But regardless of what we’re wearing, we’re still the same team that plays hard every game. It’s good that we have a longer conference. At least we have a lot of time to adjust.”

“Our goal is to keep on improving and avoid regressing. It’s still a long way to go.”