Eli Soyud, Three Others Come Home to Power Hitters

While there's no clear plan on how the Philippine SuperLiga (PSL) indoor volleyball tournaments will resume, PSL teams continue to prepare for the league's anticipated return and that, the PLDT Home Fibr Power Hitters of Coach Roger Gorayeb will enter the potential new season with four new players. The Power Hitters were slapped had a three-game losing streak during the early goings of the 2020 PSL Grand Prix before volleyball in the country was canceled due to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic.  

Part of the Power Hitters now is Iza Viray, Eli Soyud, Chin Basas, and Mariella Gabarda. None was more excited than the 39-time National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) champion coach in Gorayeb who particularly mentioned that the arrival of Soyud, Basas, and Gabarda will allow the team's reloading process to move faster as the trio have already experienced playing with each other. "It's a big thing because their experience will be a big help for us. With their former team, they were used and that, the exposure that they got was big," the coach said.

"We're hoping that they can bring it to us. They will really fill the gap that we've lost plus they're big and still young," Gorayeb added.

All four were standouts during their collegiate careers and have joined other teams prior to signing with the Power Hitters.

The five-foot-10 Soyud is a native of Cagayan de Oro and suited up for Adamson in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). She then suited up for Motolite in 2019 and Generika-Ayala in 2020.

The 24-year old Basas came from the Far Eastern University and played for Petron before joining PLDT.

Meanwhile, Gabarda has forgone her final year of eligibility with the University of the East to join Soyud and company, and Viray, the youngest of the quartet at 21, previously played for Foton and Chef's Classics. Viray still has one year with the San Beda University Red Lioness and she can still play as long as avails a special guest license from the Games and Amusement Board (GAB). 

Gorayeb revealed that he sees Viray as a player whom he plans to transform from a spike to a libero- something he has successfully done with the likes of Denden Lazaro, and Jasmine Nabor. 

"I really like players who want to prove something. She (Viray) had a great showing in the beach volleyball, especially in the receives. I will give her the chance to become a libero," Gorayeb said.