The program that always showed much promise but always had difficulties getting off the ground could finally make some noise in the upcoming Philippine Superliga (PSL) Grand Prix as the Sta. Lucia Lady Realtors parade an almost new line-up when the new season opens shop on Saturdayat the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City. The new-look Lady Realtors take on Generika-Ayala in the second game of the initial double-header.
Sta. Lucia once again made the most moves during the offseason, but the most noticeable is the hiring of Raymond "Babes" Castillo as its new head coach, replacing veteran mentor George Pascua. Within two calendar years, Castillo has transitioned from being one of the most noted high school volleyball coaches in the country to the man at the helm of the National University (NU) women's team and now the Lady Realtors. His no-nonsense approach to the game has endeared him to those he developed and the Sta. Lucia management hopes that this can translate to victories on their end. The irony is that Castillo did not elicit the help of any of the former Lady Bulldogs as he tries to rebuild the team around bonafide star attacker Jho Maraguinot and skipper Pam Lastimosa. He instead opted to bring in a few tried and tested volleybelles and a some surprising additions that could make the difference in their season-long goal of being competitive.
Here is the Sta. Lucia official roster:
Rachel AUSTERO - MB (CSB)
Jan Andrea MORANO - MB (MIT)
Casey SCHOELEIN - OP (Washington State)
Rebecca RIVERA - S (Connecticut)
Juliet CATINDIG - L (UE)
Molly LOHMAN - MB (Minnesota)
Amanda VILLANUEVA - OH (AdU)
Ria LO - L (AdMU)
Rubie DE LEON - S (UST)
Andrea MARZAN - MB (AU)
Jhoanna Maraguinot - OH (AdMU)
Souzan RASLAN - OH (CDSL)
Mic-Mic LABORTE - MB (USLS)
Pam LASTIMOSA - OP (UST)
Head Coach: Raymond "Babes" Castillo
Losing a good number of players to the upcoming collegiate volleyball season, Sta. Lucia now unfurls a pair of feisty liberos that could shock the opposition with their quickness and agility with Lo and Catindig, who will now attempt to do a Bang Pineda feat and transition from being a vaunted off-the-bench attacker during her days with the Lady Warriors and Cherrylume to a full time floor patroller.
Austero's addition fresh off another NCAA Finals appearance makes her a potential starter for the Lady Realtors while the veteran Villanueva brings in much needed firepower and tenacity at the wings.
Keeping the grizzled, battle-tested duo of Laborte and De Leon (two former national team stalwarts) keeps a semblance of balance in a line-up tilted towards youth, while Schoenlein and Lohman could form the tallest combination among imports this conference.
Schoenlein (whose surname is pronounced "Shane-Line") almost made the United States seniors team after her senior year at Washington State University and was a PAC-12 First Team All-Academic. Listed as an opposite spiker, Schoenlein actually gained acclaim for her blocks as she was nearly among her school's top thirty of all-time in that category. This is her first professional stint in Asia.
Also making her debut in the region is Lohman, another defensive specialist in her days with the University of Minnesota (the same educational establishment that produced PBA cager Maverick Ahanmisi). She amassed a staggering 530 kill blocks in her four years with the Gophers and finished fifth all-time in school history. This kinesiology graduate is also noted for her high percentage attacks and is deemed to be the prototype Middle Blocker with a major emphasis on defense.
With these two American reinforcements manning the net, Lo and Catindig mopping the floor with their jerseys, and De Leon and perennial starting playmaker Rivera to distribute, the offensive core of the Lady Realtors could be freed up to perform optimally. It will just be a question of how much time Castillo has had to instill his system that relies on variety, speed and aggression to get the job done.
With more than half the roster filled with new talent, Sta. Lucia could be the most unpredictable squad in the league this conference. The acid test comes against the Life Savers right off the bat. From there, we could be witnesses to the emergence of a new contender in the PSL.
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