Jules Tolentino relished scoring a victory over idol Gel Cayuna as the Nxled Chameleons preserved their perfect record in the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference by beating Cignal.
Playing against somebody you look up to is one thing. Winning against that person is another experience altogether.
Nxled setter Jules Tolentino found herself in that position in the Chameleons’ 25-19, 25-22, 27-25 win over Cignal in their 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference match Saturday, Feb. 14.
Tolentino held her own against the decorated Gel Cayuna, ultimately scoring one against her idol as Nxled remained undefeated at 3-0.
“Actually, I watched a lot of videos of her, because from what I can remember, she's also a converted setter,” Tolentino said after the match at the Ynares Center in Natipolo.
“So seeing her perform that well po, sobrang ini-idolize ko rin po siya.”
Tolentino and Cayuna finished with five points apiece, but it was Jules that ended up having 19 excellent sets against Gel’s eight.
But Tolentino, a former La Salle standout, didn’t seem to read much into also winning the stats battle against the Cignal ace.
The youthful setter added that she is only focused on honing her skills in hopes of helping the Chameleons reach greater heights.
“Actually di ko po sya naiisip talaga (na ang laki ng ginaling). Lagi ko lang mindset magwo-work hard lang ako. So kahit manalo matalo same pa rin yung atitude,” she said.
“Siguro po nagiging grateful din ako sa mga nangyayari but then again I’m not really complacent. Everyday gusto ko ipush sarili ko kasi gusto ko ma-reach highest potential.”
(With reports from Jamie Velasco/One Sports Digital)
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Like most sportswriters, Jan Ballesteros once dreamed of becoming a professional hooper. But he learned the hard way that it’s not for everyone.
He continues to be involved in the sport he loves, but this time as a member of the PBA Press Corps. Aside from primarily covering the PBA, he is also assigned to cover Gilas Pilipinas.