Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas Inc. yesterday named Sammy Acaylar and Francis Vicente as coaches of the men’s and women’s teams that would compete in the 29th Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in August.
LVPI President Joey Romasanta made this formal announcement over Sports Radio upon the decision of the board members during a series of meetings of the past week.
Acaylar and Vicente have been frontrunners for the role among the pool of candidates that include Ateneo men’s coach Oliver Almadro, College of St. Benilde women’s mentor Macky Cariño, and Arellano women’s coach Obet Javier, to name a few.
Acaylar guided University of Perpetual Help men’s volleyball team with four consecutive championship titles in the NCAA, including an astonishing 54-game winning streak from 2010 to 2014. He also mentored the women’s squad with three straight crowns.
Acaylar also coached the Cignal HD Spikers in the Philippine Superliga before he resigned early this year.
Vicente, for his part, was a veteran mentor for the University of Santo Tomas high school team that won three straight titles in the UAAP before coaching collegiate squads. He once handled Alyssa Valdez, Dindin and Jaja Santiago, and Kim Fajardo during their high school years.
He currently coaches the University of the East women’s team, which snapped a morale-crushing 58-game losing streak in the UAAP with a win in its last match last season.
Acaylar and Vicente are expected to hold open tryouts for national team aspirants starting this week as the country gears up to make an impact in the biennial meet.
The final 12-man lineup for each squad would be formalized by July after rigorous training.
In the 2015 Singapore edition, the women’s team finished fifth while the men’s squad placed sixth.