2 German teams eyeing ex-FEU volleyball star

Two German teams are eyeing former Far Eastern University volleyball star Rachel Ann Dacquis to reinforce their respective title quests in separate regional meets.

The 5-foot-9 Daquis, one of the most popular volleyball figures in the country, had received offers from GFL Hannover and SC Langenhagen, and the 22-year-old lass said she is inclined to accept one of them.

But before she could start playing, she must first stay in Germany and enroll in a university – a condition she must satisfy as required by both clubs.

“They actually want me as their import. But they said they cannot afford to shell out huge money for me because in Germany it’s very costly to hire foreign imports. So they instead suggested that I study there and they will take care of the rest,” said Daquis, a Far Eastern University Business Management graduate.

Daquis plans to fly to Germany next month and apply for a Sports Deutsch course at the University of Hannover, a step towards fulfilling the condition.

Daquis got the attention of the two clubs when she went to Hannover, Germany to visit her family last February.

While there, she tried out and trained with the two teams.

Of the two clubs, Daquis said she would prefer SC Langenhagen, a team competing in the 2nd Bundesliga, a regional competition. GFL Hannover is competing in an inter-town league.

The last time she wore a volleyball uniform was last year when she played as guest player for the Lady Tamaraws in the Shakey’s V-League.

With her apparently serious intention to join a German team, fans may have seen the last of her in green with yellow stripes uniform.

“I’m thinking hard about it (immigration to Germany) because you have to consider that my family is already living there,” said Daquis, who is currently taking up a one-year German language course.

A two-time Best Server awardee in the UAAP, Daquis powered the Lady Tamaraws to a “three-peat” in the UAAP starting 2004.

Shakey's girls volley unwraps at The Arena

Source: Philippine Star


MANILA, Philippines - The country’s top junior and future volleyball stars take center stage beginning today as they pit skills and talent in the Shakey’s Girls Volleyball League which unwraps its seventh season at The Arena in San Juan.

Three matches, including the featured 11 a.m. duel between former champion University of the East and top contender St. Francis of Assisi-Bacoor, usher in the new season of the league long regarded as the spawning ground of volleyball talents in the country.

In fact, the league’s top players anchored the RP team’s campaign in the 2008 Asian Girls Championships.

“Six players from that team came from UST, three from Colegio San Agustin, one from Bacolod and one from Holy Family School,” said Freddie Infante of the organizing Metro Sports. “This was both Shakey’s and Metro Sports’ contribution to the Philippine Volleyball Foundation as partners in developing present and future volley players.”

Diliman Preparatory School and University of the Philippines Integrated School kick off hostilities at 10 a.m. in a duel of the Katipunan-based squads while Imus Institute battles Unida Christian College at 1 p.m.

Hope Christian School, which beat San Antonio de Padua to capture last year’s diadem, will not see action until April 22 when it collides with Angeles University Foundation.

But action is expected to be fierce right on opening day with the UE spikers raring to go along with the five other squads as they try to gain the momentum early in the tournament serving as the Luzon leg of a countrywide league sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza.

Fourteen teams have been divided into three groups with Hope CS leading Bracket A, which includes AUF, Angelicum College, Valenzuela Nat’l High School and St. Scholastica’s College and San Antonio de Padua heading Bracket B composed of UPIS, UCC, Imus and DPS.

UE is grouped with UST, Miriam College and University of Perpetual Help-Laguna in Bracket C of the tournament backed by Toby’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, Mikasa and Asics.

They will play 30 elimination round games in the best-of-three, race-to-25-point format with the top two teams in the Luzon leg going to Tacloban City where they would join the best teams from Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo and the host city to dispute the national championship in the Tournament of Champions.

Thai factor seen in V-League

Source: Manila Bulletin

Ateneo's Charo Soriano (in yellow) join hands with thai volleyball players (L-R) Jaroensri Bualee, Sontaya Keawbundit, Porntip Santrong, and Piyatada Lasungnern in Tuesday’s launching of the 7th Shakey’s V-League. (Photo by REGIE MASON)

Games Sunday (The Arena, San Juan)
1 p.m. — Opening ceremony
2 p.m. — Ateneo vs St. Benilde
4 p.m. — FEU vs UST

Thai volleyball players Jaroensri Bualee and Sontaya Keawbundit exchanged light moments as they recalled the time when they played side by side for Rattanabundit University in collegiate tournaments in Bangkok.

Their schoolmates, Porntip Santrong and Piyatada Lasungnern, were also in one corner, talking delightfully although much of the people in the Tuesday's press conference don't really understand their language.

For a while, the four players looked like teammates rather than rivals.

But their friendship will have to take the back seat when they power their respective teams in the 7th Shakey's V-League which fires off April 11 at The Arena in San Juan City.

"Thailand is the top volleyball country in Southeast Asia. Every other country is a distant second," said Sports Vision chairman Moying Martelino, appearing along tournament director Ricky Palou and league commissioner Tonyboy Liao, in Tuesday's PSA Forum at UN Ave. "Our local players can learn a lot from them (four Thai imports)."

The four Thai spikers, who are also mainstays of the Thailand junior national teams, are expected to spice up hostilities in the country's biggest volleyball tournament with Bualee, the former league MVP, getting reunited with San Sebastian College whom she powered to a runner-up finish behind the University of Santo Tomas in last year's first conference.

A veteran spiker who saw action in the Asian Youth, Southeast Asian Games and Asian Junior Volleyball Championships, the 18-year-old Keawbundit will also get reunited with Ateneo, whom she steered to a fifth place finish in last year's first conference.

Santrong and Lasungnern, on the other hand, will see action for the first time hoping to bring V-League glory for Lyceum, a league pioneer whose best finish remains a couple of third places, and newcomer Southwestern University, the reigning Cesafi champion.

The enlistment of four Thai guest players marks the biggest number of foreign players seeing action in the league which will pit Ateneo against St. Benilde at 2 p.m. followed by the UST-Far Eastern University tiff at 4 p.m. in the opening day.