After a subpar 2025 PVL season, Michele Gumabao and the rest of the Creamline Cool Smashers are eager to regain the throne in the All-Filipino Conference.
With a healthy and complete roster finally in place, Michele Gumabao acknowledged that expectations are at their highest for the Creamline Cool Smashers heading into the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference.
Gumabao said the group enters the conference with a sharper focus, especially after a season disrupted by absences and injuries.
Coming off a grand slam season in 2024, the Cool Smashers failed to defend their titles in the All-Filipino, Invitational, and Reinforced Conferences.
“Very motivated ang Creamline talaga. think mas naging focused kami on the details. Mas naging mindful kami of all our mistakes and our errors and our shortcomings, so mas focused, I would say, mas determined,” Gumabao told One Sports.
“There are no excuses for us anymore this year. Kompleto kami, we're healthy, and we wanna play our best, so looking forward talaga to this season if makamit namin 'yung mga goals namin,” she added.
Finally complete & healthy
Creamline welcomes back key pieces who were unavailable for stretches last season. That includes Jia De Guzman, who returned from playing in Japan and national team duties, and Bernadeth Pons, fresh from her stint with Alas Pilipinas beach volleyball.
[ALSO READ: PVL: Jia De Guzman stays patient ahead of return to Creamline in All-Filipino]
For Gumabao, the priority is sustaining health as the team rebuilds rhythm.
“Sana tuloy-tuloy 'yung pagiging healthy ng team,”said Gumabao. “Ang dami naming teammates na babalik—may galing abroad, may galing national team, may galing injury.”
“Matagal na rin na hindi kami naging kompleto sabay-sabay na conditioned,” she explained. “Even our first six, parang hindi pa rin talaga naglalaro for quite a while.”
Despite the familiarity, Gumabao stressed that nothing will be taken for granted.
“Lagi namang mataas ang expectations namin for each other,” she said. “We always aim to reach the end, but we still need to maintain performance and conditioning.”
[ALSO READ: PVL preview: Can Creamline return to the top of the All-Filipino Conference?]
Creamline gets an early test of that mindset when it opens its All-Filipino campaign against the PLDT High Speed Hitters on Thursday, February 5, at the Playtime FilOil Centre in San Juan.
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Kiko Demigillo’s journey in sports storytelling began with a deep passion for games and athletes, which eventually grew into a full-fledged career.
Now a dedicated sportswriter, Kiko covers a wide range of beats for One Sports, including the PVL, UAAP, PBA, and various international tournaments.