Petro Gazz takes down ZUS Coffee to bag PVL Reinforced Conference crown

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Petro Gazz Angels proved that experience is indeed the best teacher, defeating the grand final debutants ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles 21-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-20 to clinch this season’s Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference title on Nov. 30, 2025, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

After a strong ZUS Coffee start that helped them draw first blood in the first set, Petro Gazz recovered at the perfect time midway through the second set, banking on the trio of Lindsey Vander Weide, MJ Phillips, and Brooke Van Sickle.

Petro Gazz went down by a set point twice in the second frame, but Phillips provided the first save with an off-the-block kill to bring them closer, 23-24.

The Thunderbelles had another chance to cruise to a 2-0 lead after holding a 26-25 advantage, but Vander Weide answered with a cross-court attack to equalize the nip-and-tuck affair at 26-all.

Petro Gazz smelled blood in the clutch moments of the second set, taking advantage of a disoriented ZUS Coffee squad to tie things up at 1-1 with a demoralizing 2-0 run in the final two game possessions of the deuce.

From there, the more experienced Angels regained their groove and officially shrugged off an inconsistent outing in the first two sets to successfully wrap up their import-laced conference with a reverse sweep.

Petro Gazz didn’t play catch-up in the fourth set and kept their execution crisp, including the title-sealing point from Myla Pablo, who hammered the ball to ZUS Coffee’s backline.

Vander Weide, who overcame an injury scare after spraining her ankle during the PVL quarterfinals, rewarded the management’s trust by top-scoring the game with 23 points.

A much-needed resurgence from Van Sickle also sparked the team, finishing with 20 markers, while Pablo chipped in 14 points built on 11 successful attacks.

On the other hand, DeBeer paced the Thunderbelles with a team-high 18 points, but most of her offensive contribution came in the first two sets and slowed down in the last two periods after getting checked by Phillips, Van Sickle, and Vander Weide.