Tots Carlos delivered a performance for the ages to lift reigning champion Creamline from the jaws of defeat in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference.
Carlos erupted for a career-high 38 points — the highest single-game scoring output by a local player in the PVL, to power the Cool Smashers to a thrilling 26-28, 22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 16-14 come-from-behind win over Cignal last Tuesday at Philsports Arena.
For etching her name in the annals of Philippine volleyball, the 26-year-old winger earned the sixth PVL Press Corps Player of the Week accolade.
“We don’t want to lose and suffer the same scenario as before. I can’t recall our opponent but the pain of losing still lingers in my head,”Carlos said as Creamline last suffered a stinging straight-set loss to Chery Tiggo last 16 March.
“I’m happy to have this kind of opportunity but at the end of the day, it’s the victory that counts.”
The three-time league Most Valuable Player eclipsed her previous career-high of 31 points that she set versus Akari several weeks ago. It surpassed the 33-point local pro record of Sisi Rondina in Choco Mucho’s Game 2 defeat against Creamline in the best-of-three finals last December.
Carlos also became the second-highest single-game scorer since the league organized by Sports Vision turned pro behind Akari import Prisilla Rivera, who tallied 44 points versus Choco Mucho in the 2022 Reinforced Conference.
She edged out her teammate Kyle Negrito, as well as Petro Gazz’s Brooke Van Sickle, and Chery Tiggo’s Alina Bicar for the weekly award deliberated upon by print and online scribes covering the league, which is also streamed live on www.pvl.ph.
Not one to gloat on personal glory, the former University of the Philippines star emphasized that Creamline’s success takes precedence over individual achievement.
“Those 38 points, those were not personal points — those were team points. So no matter how much we scored individually, we are happy because it’s for the benefit of the team. We always put the team ahead of personal glory,” Carlos said.
“We didn’t do anything special or extraordinary. We just simply didn’t want to lose. It’s just that we played our hearts out.”
“It’s funny because even if we were two sets down, the coaching staff didn’t say anything to pressure us. Actually, our coach (Sherwin Meneses) was even the one calming us down, saying that we just have to play and enjoy the game.”
Through the heroics of Carlos, the Cool Smashers have regained their spot atop the standings with a 6-1 record, as they seek to kick their title-retention drive into higher gear in the final stretch of the preliminaries.
