Dindin Manabat has found a new home when she joins Akari for the upcoming season of the Premier Volleyball League starting 4 February.
In a statement, the Power Chargers announced that the 6-foot-2 middle blocker will join them after spending the past six years with Chery Tiggo.
Although she played sparingly in the previous Reinforced Conference due to ankle injury, the 29-year-old Manabat is tipped to be a solid force to be reckoned with for the young Akari side.
Her length, height and skills are expected to be her biggest assets as well as her winning attitude that she developed from her long career in the collegiate, club and international levels.
She started her career with University of Santo Tomas in the junior ranks before joining National University in the senior division of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines.
Then, she played for various club teams but her stint with Petron was the most remarkable as she teamed up with Rachel Anne Daquis and Aby Marano to lead the squad to a perfect run in the 2015 Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference.
She was also part of the Foton squad that won the title of the 2016 PS Grand Prix with Lindsay Stalzer and Ariel Usher as imports.
When the Crossovers moved to the PVL, Manabat played a key role in their title run in the All-Filipino Conference that was held under a bubble setup in Ilocos Norte.
But more than her local exploits, Manabat’s experience in the international level makes her a prized catch for the Power Chargers.
Save for donning the national colors in the Southeast Asian Games, Asian Games and various FIVB events, Manabat also played for Toray Arrows and Kurobe AquaFairies in the Japan V. League as well as Nakhon Ratchasima in the Thailand Volleyball League.
“Leadership. Intensity. And topnotch skills. All of these we can expect from the newest member of the Akari fam. Let’s welcome Dindin Manabat into the fold,” the Power Chargers said.
At Akari, she will join a young core of Trisha Genesis, Erika Raagas, Lycha Ebon, Michelle Cobb, Jaja Maraguinot and Dani Ravena with Janine Marciano, Bang Pineda and Eli Soyud providing veteran leadership.
Their coach will be Brazilian Jorge Edson Souza de Brito, who handled Manabat during the 2021 AVC Asian Women’s Club Championship in Thailand.
