2015 PSL season

2015 PSL season
Duration	March 21 - December 5, 2015
Number of teams	Women's: 6
TV partner(s)	TV5, AksyonTV, Sports5.ph, Solar Sports
Draft
Top draft pick	Iris Tolenada (San Francisco State)
Picked by	Philips Gold Lady Slammers
Conferences
All-Filipino champions	Women's: Petron Blaze Spikers Men's: (no tournament)
Runners-up	Women's: Shopinas.com Lady Clickers
Beach Challenge Cup champions	Women's: Giligan's Sisig Queens Men's: SM By The Bay (Team A)
Runners-up	Women's: Foton Tornadoes Men's: Champion Infinity (Team B)
Grand Prix champions	Women's: Foton Tornadoes Men's: (no tournament)
Runners-up	Women's: Petron Blaze Spikers
Seasons
< 2014 2016  >

The 2015 PSL Season is the third season of the Philippine Super Liga (PSL). There will be two indoor conferences for the season – the All-Filipino, and the Grand Prix. It staged its first beach volleyball tournament, the Challenge Cup, for the women's and men's divisions.^[1]

Developments

• The PSL is now sanctioned under the Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. (LVPI), the newest governing body for volleyball in the Philippines under the leadership of POC 1st Vice President Joey Romasanta, aside for being recognized by the AVC and the FIVB. The PSL was first sanctioned by the Philippine Volleyball Federation (PVF) until the federation was stripped of its recognition by the local (POC) and foreign (FIVB, AVC) sport governing bodies. The LVPI also supported the stints of Cignal and Petron who participated in the Asian Club Championships, and helped on the processing of the imports transfer clearances for the 12 imports that played in the Grand Prix.^[2]

• The PSL introduced the use of "skorts", a combination of tennis-like skirts and shorts, as part of the women's uniforms during the All Filipino Conference, but it was discontinued during the PSL Grand Prix.

• Continuous coaching and players, television crew, officiating (referees), volleyball information system, press corps and medical seminars.

• After the introduction of the Men's Division in the PSL in 2013, the PSL launched the Beach Volleyball division thru the Challenge Cup and Open Series.

• The PSL's official newspaper, PSL Trending, managed by the PSL Press Corps under its president, Marc Anthony Reyes of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. PSL Trending is given to the fans for free at the venues during gamedays.

• The PSL has partnered with the TV5 Network (TV5, AksyonTV and Sports5.ph) for three years starting 2015, for the broadcast and online coverage.

• The PSL became the third Southeast Asian-based volleyball club league (next to Thailand and Vietnam) to utilize the video challenge system to decide crucial calls of the games for a fair and balanced officiating, as part of the full compliance to the FIVB rules. The video challenge equipment arrived on October 26, 2015 and used during the second round of the 2015 Grand Prix conference.^[3]

2015 draft (Women's Division)

The draft was held on March 12, 2015 at SM Aura Premier, Taguig City.^{[4] [5][6]}

First round

Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	Team	College
1	Iris Tolenada	Setter	United States	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	San Francisco State
2	Angeli Araneta	Middle Blocker	Philippines	Foton Tornadoes	UP
3	Rica Enclona	Libero	Philippines	Cignal HD Spikers	DLS-CSB
4	Rizza Jane Mandapat	Opposite Spiker	Philippines	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	NU
5	Maureen Veronas	Opposite Spiker/ Outside Hitter	Philippines	Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions	DLS-CSB
6	Alexa Micek	Opposite Spiker	United States	Petron Blaze Spikers	NC State

Second round

Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	Team	College
1	Siemens Desiree Dadang	Middle	Philippines	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	NU
2	Dennise Michelle Lazaro	Libero	Philippines	Foton Tornadoes	ADMU
3	Diane Ticar	Setter	Philippines	Cignal HD Spikers	Arellano
4	Djanel Welch Cheng	Setter	Philippines	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	DLS-CSB
5	Samantha Dawson	Opposite Spiker	Philippines	Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions	FEU
6	Ivy Jizel Perez	Setter	Philippines	Petron Blaze Spikers	NU

Indoor Volleyball

All-Filipino Conference

The Petron Blaze Spikers became the first team to sweep a PSL tournament with a 13-0 record and claim the All-Filipino championship, its second consecutive PSL title.^[7][8][9] There was no men's tournament for this conference.

Classification round (March 21 to April 23, 2015):

		Pts	Matches		Sets			Points
Rank	Team		W	L	W	L	Ratio	W	L	Ratio
1	Petron Blaze Spikers	28	10	0	30	7	4.286	881	709	1.243
2	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	19	6	4	22	16	1.375	812	819	0.991
3	Foton Tornadoes	16	5	5	20	18	1.111	843	795	1.060
4	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	14	5	5	18	21	0.857	811	849	0.955
5	Cignal HD Spikers	7	2	8	10	24	0.417	718	797	0.901
6	Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions	7	2	8	10	24	0.417	713	809	0.881

Playoffs (April 25 to May 16, 2015):

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
						1	Petron Blaze Spikers	3
	4	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	3			4	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	0
	5	Cignal HD Spikers	2								1	Petron Blaze Spikers	3
											2	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	1
						2	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	3
	3	Foton Tornadoes	3			3	Foton Tornadoes	2
	6	Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions	0

Final standing:

Rank Team Petron Blaze Spikers Shopinas.com Lady Clickers Philips Gold Lady Slammers 4 Foton Tornadoes 5 Cignal HD Spikers 6 Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions

2015 Philippine Super Liga All-Filipino Conference Petron Blaze Spikers 2nd title Team Roster Mary Grace Masangkay, Abigail Maraño, Rachel Anne Daquis, Carmina Aganon, Luisa Mae Zapanta, Jozza Cabalsa, Frances Xinia Molina, Alexa Micek, Ivy Perez, Ana Ma. Del Mundo, Jennylyn Reyes, Mecaila Irish May Morada , Fille Cayetano, Aleona Denise Manabat Head Coach George Pascua

Grand Prix Conference

The Grand Prix Conference started on October 10, 2015 at the Alonte Sports Arena in Binan, Laguna. There was no men's tournament for this conference.

Classification round (October 10 to November 16, 2015):

		Pts	Matches		Sets			Points
Rank	Team		W	L	W	L	Ratio	W	L	Ratio
1	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	22	8	2	27	14	1.929	930	865	1.075
2	Petron Blaze Spikers	21	7	3	26	15	1.733	923	831	1.111
3	Cignal HD Spikers	20	7	3	23	17	1.353	866	829	1.045
4	Foton Tornadoes	19	6	4	23	15	1.533	838	767	1.093
5	MERALCO Power Spikers	5	1	9	9	27	0.333	735	839	0.876
6	RC Cola Air Force Raiders	3	1	9	9	29	0.310	747	908	0.823

Playoffs (November 19 to December 5, 2015):

	Semifinals				Final
	19 Nov
	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	0
	Foton Tornadoes	1
					26 Nov - 5 Dec
					Foton Tornadoes	2
					Petron Blaze Spikers	1
					3rd place match
	19 Nov			21 Nov
	Petron Blaze Spikers	1		Philips Gold Lady Slammers	1
	Cignal HD Spikers	0			Cignal HD Spikers	0

Final standings:

Rank Team Foton Tornadoes Petron Blaze Spikers Philips Gold Lady Slammers 4 Cignal HD Spikers 5 MERALCO Power Spikers 6 RC Cola Air Force Raiders Qualified for the 2016 Asian Club Volleyball Championship

2015 Philippine Super Liga Grand Prix Conference Champions Foton Tornadoes 1st title Team Roster 1.) Angeli Araneta 2.) Katie Messing 3.) Jaja Santiago 4.) Patty Orendain 5.) Kara Acevedo 6.) Lindsay Stalzer 7.) Ivy Remulla 8.) May Macatuno 9.) Ivy Perez 10.) Kayla Williams 11.) Bia General 16.) Royce Estampa 17.) Fiola Ceballos 18.) Jeannie delos Reyes Head Coach: Ma. Vilet Ponce de Leon

Beach Volleyball

Women's Division

Final standing:

Rank Team Giligan's Sisig Queens Foton Tornadoes Cignal HD Spikers (Team B) 4 Foton Hurricanes 5 MERALCO Power Spikers 6 Petron XCS 7 Amy's Kitchen 8 Philips Gold Lady Slammers 9 Petron Sprint 4T 10 Accel Quantum (Team B) 11 BENECO 12 Accel Quantum (Team A) 13 Cignal HD Spikers (Team A)

2015 Philippine Super Liga Beach Challenge Cup Giligan's Sisig Queens 1st title Team Roster Danika Gendrauli and Norie Jane Diaz

Men's Division

Final standing:

Rank Team SM By The Bay (Team A) Champion Infinity (Team B) Cignal HD Spikers (Team A) 4 CenterStage Family KTV 5 Cignal HD Spikers (Team B) 6 Champion Infinity (Team A) 7 UPHSD Altas - Molino (Team A) 8 IEM Volley Masters 9 UPHSD Altas - Molino (Team B) 10 SM By The Bay (Team B)

2015 Philippine Super Liga Beach Challenge Cup SM By The Bay (Team A) 1st title Team Roster Jade Becaldo and Hachaliah Gilbuena Head Coach: Eric Lecain

International competitions

AVC Asian Women's Championship

An all-PSL selection represented the Philippines in the 2015 Asian Women's Volleyball Championship.^{[10][11][12][13]} The team placed 12th out of 14 competitors.

Philippines (18th Asian Women's Championship)
No.	Player	Ht.	College	PSL Club	Position
3	Angelique Beatrice Dionela	1.50 m (4 ft 11 in)	UPHSD	Cignal HD Spikers	Defensive Specialist
4	Carmina Aganon	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)	NU	Petron Blaze Spikers	Outside Hitter
5	Melissa Gohing	1.59 m (5 ft 2 ^1⁄2 in)	DLSU	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	Libero
6	Jeanette Panaga	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)	DLS-CSB	Cignal HD Spikers	Middle Blocker
7	Michele Gumabao	1.76 m (5 ft 9 ^1⁄2 in)	DLSU	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	Opposite Hitter
10	Iris Tolenada	1.74 m (5 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in)	San Francisco State	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	Setter
11	Ma. Lourdes Clemente	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)	UPHSD	Cignal HD Spikers	Middle Blocker
13	Kim Kianna Dy	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)	DLSU	Shopinas.com Lady Clickers	Middle Blocker
14	Ma. Abigail Praca	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)	USJ-R	Mane 'n Tail Lady Stallions	Middle Blocker
15	Ivy Jisel Perez	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)	NU	Petron Blaze Spikers	Setter
17	Myla Pablo	1.76 m (5 ft 9 ^1⁄2 in)	NU	Philips Gold Lady Slammers	Outside Hitter
18	Frances Molina	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)	San Beda	Petron Blaze Spikers	Middle Hitter/Outside Hitter

Coaching staff Head Coach: Sinfronio "Sammy" Acaylar (CIG) Assistant Coach(s): Francis Vicente (PHG) Rosemarie Prochina (MNT) Benson Bocboc (SHP)

Team Staff Team Manager: Team Utility:

Medical Staff Team Physician: Physical Therapist: Marie Ong

AVC Club Championships

The champions of the 2014 Grand Prix - the Petron Blaze Spikers (women's)^[14] and the Cignal HD Spikers (men's)^[15][16] - represented the Philippines in the 2015 AVC Club Volleyball Championships.

• The Petron Blaze Spikers placed 8th out of 9 competitors in the women's tournament held in Vietnam on September 12 to 20, 2015.^[17]

• The Cignal HD Spikers placed 12th out of 16 competitors in the men's tournament held in Taipei on August 13 to 21, 2015.

Venues

All-Filipino Conference: Cuneta Astrodome (main venue) Mall of Asia Arena (March 21 - opening day) Filoil Flying V Arena (March 29 and March 30) Alonte Sports Arena ("Spike on Tour" / March 26, April 9 and April 18) Quezon Convention Center ("Spike on Tour" / April 25)[18] Imus City Sports Center ("Spike on Tour" / May 11 / Finals Game 1) Beach Volleyball: Sands - SM By The Bay (SM Mall of Asia)

Grand Prix: Cuneta Astrodome (main venue) Filoil Flying V Arena (secondary venue) Alonte Sports Arena (October 10 - opening day) Malolos Sports and Convention Center ("Spike on Tour" / November 7) De La Salle Lipa ("Spike on Tour" / November 14) Imus City Sports Center ("Spike on Tour" / November 21)

Broadcast partners

• TV5, AksyonTV, Sports5.ph
• Solar Sports

Controversies

On October, PVF President Edgardo "Boy" Cantada, condemned the act of the LVPI and Score (headed by Ramon Suzara, the president of PSL, and one of the masterminds in the withdrawal of recognition of PVF in the POC, AVC, and FIVB) over the incident involving 12 imports of the Philippine Super Liga Grand Prix who have go through the immigration process and play in the league without any necessarily working permits and other documents on foreigners who will work in the country. He also criticized LVPI and Suzara, for blatant disgard and abuse of the Philippine immigration and labor laws over the incident.^[19]

References

1. Julius Manicad (February 20, 2015). "Bigger, better Superliga marks third season". The Daily Tribune. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
2. "PSL completes imports’ ITC, all set for Grand Prix". PSL website. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
3. "PSL unveils video challenge system as unbeaten Cignal clashes with champ Petron". Spin.ph. Retrieved 2015-10-26.
4. "HEAD-TURNERS: FIL-FOREIGN PLAYERS SIGN UP FOR PSL DRAFT". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
5. http://manilastandardtoday.com/2015/02/20/ph-superliga-to-welcome-24-rookies/
6. http://sports.tempo.com.ph/2015/02/20/ph-super-liga-sees-banner-year/
7. http://sports.inquirer.net/181562/petron-blazes-new-superliga-title-trail
8. http://www.philstar.com/sports/2015/05/15/1454951/superligas-super-sweep-petron-blaze-beats-shopinas-psl-crown
9. http://sports.tempo.com.ph/2015/05/15/petron-wins-2nd-superliga-crown/
10. "AVC Board approves latest updates on 2014 and 2015 competitions". AVC. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
11. http://philippinesuperliga.com/wp/2015/04/3147/
12. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/04/14/15/psl-stars-lead-ph-team-asian-seniors-tilt
13. http://manilastandardtoday.com/2015/04/15/ph-volley-team-boasts-of-powerhouse-roster/
14. http://www.spin.ph/volleyball/news/asian-club-womens-championship-volleyball-petron-blaze-spikers-dindin-santiago
15. http://www.tribune.net.ph/sports/cignal-hd-competes-in-avc-men-s-tourney
16. http://sports.inquirer.net/187647/psl-to-represent-ph-in-asian-mens-volleyball-club-championships
17. http://www.philstar.com:8080/sports/2015/09/20/1502149/petron-blaze-spikers-come-out-stronger-after-8th-place-finish
18. "Superliga goes to Quezon Province". Manila Bulletin. February 22, 2015. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
19. "Foreign players in Superliga under fire". Manila Times. 2015-10-25. Retrieved 2015-10-26.