Fancied Cignal HD tests Meralco pair

MANILA, Philippines - Meralco’s Jusabelle Brillo and Jem Gutierrez hope to defy the odds as they go up against Cignal HD’s Wensh Tiu and April Ross in the quarterfinal round of the PLDT Home Ultera Philippine Superliga Beach Volleyball 2015 powered by Smart Live More at the Sands By the Bay in SM Mall of Asia this weekend.

A seasoned spiker from University of the Visayas, Brillo and the 19-year old Gutierrez disposed of Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) of Cindy Benitez and Florence May Madulid in the opener and made it to the quarters despite dropping a five-set loss to Foton Tornadoes’ Fiola Ceballos and Patty Orendain of Foton Tornadoes last week.

Ranged against the fancied Cignal pair, Brillo and Gutierrez remain upbeat of their chances to advance in the tournament organized by Sports Core with Accel as official outfitter, Sands By the Bay as venue partner and Maynilad as official water provider.

“If we play as a team and continue to trust each other, we will be tough to beat,” said Brillo in Filipino.

“In beach volley, it’s not all about height, skills or experience but also trust on each other,” said Brillo, a veteran of the past two editions of the Asian Beach Games in Bali, Indonesia and Phuket, Thailand.

Brillo and Gutierrez were not the original choices as tandem in tourney that is also being aired live over TV 5.

Brillo was supposed to team up with Cherry Rondina of University of Santo Tomas while another spiker was considered to pair with Gutierrez.

But the duo ended up together just days before the opening of the tournament, giving them very little room to develop chemistry and teamwork.

“We’re unlike majority of the teams that have been training for quite some time,” said Gutierrez, a Behavioral Science student from UST. “But though we’re not too familiar with each other’s game inside the court, she’s (Brill) been patient in guiding and helping me to further improve my game.”

It’s going to be another uphill climb, but Brillo and Gutierrez are a bit worried.

“For as long as we trust each other inside the court, we’ll be okay,” said Brillo.