The long-waited debut of the F2 Cargo Movers in the PVL Open Conference will take place on March 16 at 3 p.m. as they battle against the Black Mamba-Army at the Paco Arena Events & Sports Center. This will be the first time a Ramil De Jesus squad will play for V-League since 2009, before the management of the De La Salle Lady Spikers withdrew from the conference due to a series of injuries.
The double-header opening day of the 2022 Premier Volleyball League Open Conference will also feature the battle against defending champions Chery Tiggo and Cignal HD Spikers at 6 p.m.
Pool A will have Chery Tiggo, F2 Logistics, Cignal HD, Black Mamba Army, and Choco Mucho. Pool B is composed of last year’s bridesmaid finisher Creamliner Cool Smashers, Balipure, PetroGazz and, PLDT. Perla Spikers and Sta. Lucia Realtors opted to sit out this year’s conference.
Teams will have to battle each other in their respective pools. For Pool A, only four teams will advance to the cross-pool games after the play-offs. This means that all teams under Pool B will advance to the knockout quarterfinals with the top two teams of each pool earning a twice-to-beat advantage.
With the new pool format, the teams will only have a nine-day play-offs, from March 16 to March 24, before heading to the quarterfinals which will start on March 27.
See the schedule of games after the opening day:
March 18 (Friday)
3pm: Pool A – Choco Mucho Flying Titans vs. Black Mamba Army
6pm: Pool A – F2 Logistics Cargo Movers vs. Chery Tiggo Crossovers
March 20 (Sunday)
3pm: Pool A – Cignal HD Spikers vs. F2 Logistics Cargo Movers
6pm: Pool A – Chery Tiggo Crossovers vs. Choco Mucho Flying Titans
March 21 (Monday)
3pm: Pool B – PLDT Home Fibr vs. Petro Gazz Angels
6pm: Pool B – Balipure vs. Creamline Cool Smashers
March 22 (Tuesday)
3pm: Pool A – Choco Mucho Flying Titans vs. Cignal HD Spikers
6pm: Pool A – Black Mamba Army vs. Chery Tiggo Crossovers
March 23 (Wednesday)
3pm: Pool B – Balipure vs PLDT Home Fibr
6pm: Pool B – Petro Gazz Angels vs. Creamline Cool Smashers
March 24 (Thursday)
3pm: Pool A – Cignal HD Spikers vs. Black Mamba Army
6pm: Pool A – F2 Logistics Cargo Movers vs. Choco Mucho Flying Titans
What to expect from this year’s PVL Open Conference?
The Creamline Cool Smashers will parade their line-up with Alyssa Valdez leading the pack, together with Jia Morado. Choco Mucho is also set to debut with their new team with the addition of UP Lady Maroons’ Issa Molde, and DLSU Lady Spikers’ Desiree Cheng and Aduke Ogunsanya. F2 Logistics will finally don their prized setter, Kim Fajardo. However, their scoring machine Kalei Mau will not be joining the team as she suited up for Athletes Unlimited in the United States. But F2 Logistics will still be a team-to-beat especially after tapping the services of Ateneo Lady Eagles alum Dzi Gervacio.
Chery Tiggo, F2 Logistics, Creamline, and Choco Mucho are heavily-favored to win this year’s conference. However, defending Champions Chery Tiggo will have to contend without their MVP Jaja Santiago and main gun Dindin Manabat-Santiago who are both currently playing international volleyball in Japan and Thailand, respectively.
Catch your favorite teams as they banner their star-studded line-up for the 2022 PVL Open Conference.
