Tots Carlos churns out an MVP-worthy performance. —PVL PHOTOS
MANILA, Philippines — Even though was converted to a new position in the 2023 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference due to Alyssa Valdez’s absence, Tots Carlos still thrived as an outside hitter and won her third league MVP plum on top of Creamline’s successful title defense.
Playing as an opposite spiker for the longest time, Carlos still shone the brightest in her new role becoming the winningest MVP in the league tied with her teammate Valdez, who sat out in the conference due to a right knee injury.
Carlos, who was surprised after her name was called, credited the trust of coach Sherwin Meneses.
“Actually, I couldn’t believe it. I was so speechless earlier,” said Carlos, who also won the 1st Best Outside Spiker award. “I think it’s because of our coach’s trust to change my position. His trust was a huge factor for me because he believes that I can play in that position.”
The University of the Philippines, though, standout said the top individual award is just second to their championship, which they earned after a hard-fought series against Petro Gazz.
Creamline Cool Smashers win PVL All-Filipino Conference title. –PVL PHOTO
“I’m not focused on any individual awards. I’m always [looking at] the team’s goal. I’m so grateful for the support of my teammates. Without their support, I won’t be able to achieve this award,” said Carlos in Filipino.
In their most challenging conference yet, Creamline stayed on top amid missing Valdez and facing a hard-fighting Petro Gazz side to win sixth PVL crown.
Carlos never lost faith in her teammates, who never gave up despite losing Game 1 and surrendering all the first sets of their best-of-three Finals series with the Angels.
“Individually, the team is competitive and you won’t see any signs of giving up. One thing I admired about them when I came here [in 2021] was the healthy competition between all the members. It pushed me to match their competitiveness and have their mindset,” she said. “I’m really happy because our team has a really good mindset and it has healthy competition inside the team.”
Before the PVL Invitationals in June, Carlos’ next challenge is her first Southeast Asian Games stint as she and six other Cool Smashers will be part of the Philippine women’s volleyball team that will compete in Cambodia in May.
Even though she wanted to cherish their sweet championship, the three-time PVL MVP will shift her focus to helping the country end an 18-year medal drought.
“We just really want to play our best for the national team, especially since we will be together with most of our teammates, so we’re really excited to play for the national team,” Carlos said.