Chery Tiggo looks to have unveiled the steal of the draft in third round pick Renee Peñafiel, with the former UST Golden Tigress off to a fast start in PVL on Tour.
UST’s Renee Peñafiel proved to be the steal of the draft for the Chery Tiggo Crossovers as she emerged among top performing rookies with back-to-back big games for her team in Montalban, helping Chery to a 2-0 slate in the PVL on Tour.
Peñafiel, who has played with a chip on her shoulder, went to the Crossovers in the third round of the 2025 PVL Rookie Draft. But the way that she showed out in Rizal was worthy of being dubbed as a blue-chip recruit.
After uncorking an 11-point performance against Capital1, Peñafiel one-upped herself with 12 points in a five set victory over the Akari Chargers — becoming the team's second leading scorer behind veteran hitter Cess Robles.
[READ: Chery Tiggo repulses Akari in five sets for perfect PVL on Tour start]
Eager to enjoy volleyball with a clean slate, Peñafiel made sure to make the most of her opportunities.
“Since ngayon lang po ulit ako nakalaro, gutom po talaga ako sa laro,” said Peñafiel.
“Masaya naman po [ako sa team]. Yung first day ko po as Chery, hindi rin po siya mahirap mag-adjust and very welcoming po agad yung team so na-adapt ko rin po agad kung anong merong sistema si coach Norman [Miguel],” she added.
Not many realize that Peñafiel was actually left out of the Golden Tigresses’ lineup in UAAP Season 87, as she was relegated to Team B.
Choosing to bet on herself, Peñafiel entered her name into the PVL Draft, and Miguel was quick to recognize the talent he saw in her.
When he saw that she was still available late into the selections, the Crossovers took advantage.
“Spectacular naman talaga yung pinakita niya. Although nung nagsimula naman talaga siya sa training namin after noong draft. Ako personally, nakita ko talaga kung ano talaga yung maico-contribute niya,” Miguel said.
“Gusto ko talaga matake advantage yun eh, yung skills niya, especially bata pa siya tapos may character kasi tong batang to, kaya yun yung nakita kong character na palaban ba. Makakadagdag talaga sa mga players.”
Now with a chance to make a name for herself — this time in the pro leagues — the budding rookie is willing to put in the work.
After all, there is much to catch up to as far as she’s concerned.
“Tinake ko lang po talaga yung opportunity na makalaro rin sa pro. To be honest po, sobrang kinulang ako nu’ng college days. Dito po ako babawi,” she said.
Next time out, Peñafiel and the rest of the Crossovers will face stiffer challenges, though as they battle the Cignal HD Spikers and the Creamline Cool Smashers on July 19 and July 20, respectively, in Passi City.