By MARK REY MONTEJO
Wilma Salas will once again showcase the stuff that endeared her to thousands of Filipino volleyball fans as she makes another tour of duty for Petro Gazz in the import-flavored edition of the PVL, the franchise announced on social media Wednesday, July 10.
The 35-year-old Salas, who led the Angels to their first-ever title after beating the Creamline Cool Smashers in 2019, was named as the squad’s reinforcement for the upcoming PVL Reinforced Conference which opens next Tuesday, July 16.
“The 2019 PVL Reinforced Conference Best Foreign Guest Player awardee who led the Petro Gazz Angels to a championship will refuel our journey this Reinforced Conference,” Petro Gazz wrote in the post. “Welcome back, Wilma Salas!”
A winner of the former Best Foreign Guest Player plum, Salas will play under the tutelage of newly hired coach Koji Tsuzubara who was tapped by Petro Gazz last January.
The 6-foot-2 spiker will lead the conference three-peat bid of the Angels as she reunites with Chie Saet, Djanel Cheng and Jonah Sabete.
Other members of the team are Remy Palma, Aiza Pontillas, Myla Pablo, MJ Phillips, and the all-Filipino Conference MVP, Brooke Van Sickle.
A member of the Brazilian squad that won the silver medal in the 2011 Pan Am Games, Salas has had several stints in various parts of the world, playing for Rabita Baku in Azerbaijan in 2014 before moving to Turkey where she suited up for two clubs.
Her stellar performance in Turkey earned her an invite to be Petro Gazz’s import in 2019. After her PVL stint, she flew to Europe and won five titles with KPS Chemik Police in the Polish league in a two-year span.
Salas, however, sustained a knee injury that forced her top briefly, and when she recovered, she saw action for Olympiacos S.F Piraeus.
