AFTER a three-year absence from the women’s volley scene, the Foton Tornadoes are ready and eager to explode again.
The Tornadoes, the second team of United Asia Automotive Group Inc. (UAAGI) in the Premier Volleyball League, aim to continue their winning tradition as they join the title chase in the PVL Invitational Conference which unwraps on June 27 at the Filoil EcoOil Center in San Juan City.
Speaking on behalf of the team, Foton team manager Aaron Velez expressed his gratitude to the league for giving UAAGI another platform to showcase the talents from their deep player-pool.
“I believe the management is thrilled and honored to have the opportunity to form and revive Foton in the volleyball scene. The management has always been an advocate for talent development and sports programs,” said Velez, also the head coach of Chery Tiggo.
“Now, it’s time to live up to that commitment,” Velez said.
Former Crossovers players will banner the Tornadoes’ campaign, including Shaya Adorador, Jasmine Nabor, Seth Rodriguez, May Luna, France Ronquillo, Bingle Landicho and Jaila Atienza.
The team also tapped Army player Nene Bautista to serve as one of the team’s leaders along with fellow veterans Bern Flora and Carly Hernandez, who are both making their return to the pro ranks.
Completing the roster are young guns Babylove Barbon, Maji Mangulabnan, Mary Rhose Dapol and Sydney Niegos with Brian Esquibel serving as the team’s head coach.
Foton, the back-to-back Grand Prix champions (2015-26) in the defunct Philippine Superliga, is pooled in Group B with Petro Gazz, F2 Logistics, Choco Mucho, Cignal and newcomer Farm Fresh in the upcoming mid-season conference of the league organized by Sports Vision and backed by BingoPlus, ArenaPlus, Mikasa, SMART, Rebisco, Kumu, Asics and SportRadar.
The Tornadoes hope to get going early as they tangle with the Angels on June 29 of a triple-bill which also features the Creamline-Gerflor and Choco Mucho-Farm Fresh matches. Games will be telecast on PVL.ph, One Sports and One Sports+ with live streaming on Smart Livestream and Cignal Play.
Velez, however, has opted to temper expectations for the returning champion franchise.
“To be honest, we don’t want to set any specific expectations. Instead, we would like the Foton Tornadoes to showcase their capabilities and demonstrate what they are made of. That’s the primary reason why our supportive management formed the Foton Tornadoes,” he said.