MANILA, Philippines — With Creamline Cool Smashers acquiring 6-foot-5 middle-blocker Jaja Santiago, the team was highly projected to enter the finals of the 2026 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Invitational Conference.
But that is not the case.
Despite the stacked roster of stars that Creamline has, the Sherwin Meneses-mentored team was relegated to the bronze medal match after a gruesome five-set loss over the defending champion PLDT High Speed Hitters, 25-17, 23-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-12, on Sunday, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.
Initially gunning to gift Creamline its 12th overall title in the league, Santiago bared that the loss to PLDT was painful and she needs to shift her focus to doing her best to step onto the podium.
“We are really aiming for the championship. I’m really sad, and I really feel bad that I wasn't able to give that to them in the short span that I'm here playing with them, but I don’t know. I’m gonna work harder on Tuesday no matter what happens and at least go for a podium finish, I guess,” Santiago, who finished with 19 points, said after the loss.
Creamline had a 3-0 start in the PVL Invitational preliminary round after defeating Nxled, Farm Fresh, and Ho Chi Minh City, before falling at the hands of EST Cola and PLDT.
While there’s high expectations on their side as having Santiago means a “sure ticket” to the finals, the decorated middle-blocker shared that the team have to admit that they really fell short.
“Of course, as I said, it was a really tough loss and everyone probably gave their best, it just fell short in the end, and perhaps because of the short preparation for everything against the teams we played, I think we really fell short,” she shared.
Santiago now focuses on the best outcome for Creamline.
“There are still things we truly need to improve as a team, and like I said earlier, the fight isn't over yet. We still have a game on Tuesday and it’s not the finals, it’s not for gold, but we can change our mindset to treat it like the finals because no matter what happens, if we win we will get the medal and it’s still the same
“It’s not the gold, but still, a win is a win, so we really need to work hard for Tuesday and it’s a must-win.”
