It may still be the preseason, but for PLDT and Chery Tiggo, winning the first-ever PVL on Tour crown means everything when they collide in a winner-take-all championship match on Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena.

All roads lead to Pasay City at 6:30 p.m. when the pioneering professional volleyball league in the country culminates its maiden preseason tournament, which brought the action to eight provinces.

There was hardly any dip in passion, intensity and competitiveness among the 12 teams, who treated the preseason like any other conference.

But in the end, two rose to the top. And only one will get to wear the crown.

Rising as the team to beat was PLDT, which swept its seven games—capped by an epic five-set comeback win over 10-time champion Creamline—on its way to its first-ever PVL final.

“We have a mindset that there’s no such thing as preseason tournaments because we always prepare and train hard just to compete, regardless of the lineup or setup,” PLDT coach Rald Ricafort told the Inquirer before his second PVL finals since winning the 2022 Reinforced Conference with his former team Petro Gazz.

Also hungry to rule the On Tour is Chery Tiggo, which stunned Cignal in the knockout semifinal to make its return to the PVL final since ruling the first pro tournament in the 2021 Open Conference inside a bubble in Bacarra, Ilocos Norte.

“I know our players, I know their character. I know how much they want to win. I feel the hunger and the grit,” Chery Tiggo coach Norman Miguel said.

“It’s been a while. They want to experience the feeling of being a champion. We’ll work doubly hard every step of the way to win,” he added.

Miguel admitted he’s feeling a mix of excitement and pressure in his first championship game since helping National University rule the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament last year.

He didn’t expect that they would reach this far, as they took it one game at a time.

But now that they’re here, Miguel is confident that the ‘no superstar’ culture of Chery Tiggo will be on full display when Ara Galang, Cess Robles, Jasmine Nabor, Renee Peñafiel, Imee Hernandez, Aby Maraño and Karen Verdeflor try to bring back the glory to their franchise after four years.

Ricafort will continue to bank on his healthy and complete roster, bannered by Savi Davison, who is fresh from a 34-point semifinal explosion, Majoy Baron, Mika Reyes, Kianna Dy, Kim Fajardo, Jovy Prado and Kath Arado.

“We’ll still take it one point and one set at a time. We will continue to work hard until we reach our goal,” Ricafort said.

At 4 p.m., perennial title contender Creamline eyes to end its preseason with a bronze medal against Cignal. INQ

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