Van Sickle leads Petro Gazz past Army

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino-American sensation Brooke Van Sickle lived up to lofty billing as Petro Gazz ushered in a new era with an easy 25-11, 25-19, 25-19 win over the Philippine Army in the opener of the PNVF Champions League yesterday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

The high-flying spiker out of University of Hawaii scored 16 points on 14 attacks, a block and an ace to lead the way in the Angels’ straight-sets victory in only 81 minutes.

Nicole Tiamzon, Myla Pablo – who returned to her old team after a stint with the disbanded F2 Logistics – and Kecelyn Galdones backstopped Van Sickle with nine, eight and seven points, respectively, as all eight other Angels also scored.

The win gifted Japanese coach Koji Tsuzurabara a winning debut with the Angels ahead of their campaign in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL).

“Today is my first game and I just said to the players before the game to have fun together,” said the seasoned mentor who had previous stints in the PVL with the U-19 team of Kinh Bac Bac Ninh from Vietnam.