2024 Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference

2024 Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference
Duration	September 4–12, 2024
Matches	12
Teams	5
Attendance	15,692 (1,308 per match)
TV partner(s)	One Sports One Sports+ Pilipinas Live RPTV
Results
Champions	Creamline Cool Smashers
Runners-up	Cignal HD Spikers
Third place	Kurashiki Ablaze
Fourth place	Est Cola
Awards
Conference MVP	Michele Gumabao
Finals MVP	Kyle Negrito
Best OH	María José Pérez Erica May Staunton
Best MB	Jacqueline Acuña Low Mei Cing
Best OPP	Saya Taniguchi
Best Setter	Kyle Negrito
Best Libero	Kalyarat Khamwong
PVL Invitational Conference chronology
< 2023 2025 >
PVL conference chronology
< 2024 Reinforced 2024–25 All-Filipino >

The 2024 Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference was the nineteenth conference of the Premier Volleyball League and its tenth conference as a professional league.

This was the third and last conference for the 2024 season. Unlike the previous iterations of the league, this conference was a short pocket tournament, lasting about nine days, making it the shortest conference in the league. The conference started on September 4, 2024, coinciding with the finals of the 2024 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference.

Originally, the semifinalists of the 2024 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference are qualified and will be able to play alongside two foreign guest teams — the reigning Invitational champions, Kurashiki Ablaze of Japan, and the newcomers, Est Cola of Thailand. But due to players' injuries, the PLDT High Speed Hitters and the Akari Chargers begged off from participation. The Farm Fresh Foxies will be the sole replacement as the other PVL teams declined to join.

Qualification

The Invitational Conference is a pocket tournament and only the top four among the twelve Premier Volleyball League teams in the previous tournament (the 2024 Reinforced Conference) are qualified to participate along with two foreign-based guest teams.

The PLDT High Speed Hitters qualified as semifinalists but withdrew due to injuries from the past conference. ^[1] It will be the eight placers Farm Fresh Foxies replaced PLDT after the next three ranked teams Chery Tiggo, Petro Gazz and Capital1 declined the PVL's invite. ^[2] Akari Chargers also pulled out from the conference citing the same reason with PLDT. Akari were not replaced, making the participants down to five teams. ^[3] This will be the conference with the least number of teams joining.

Two guest teams are Kurashiki Ablaze, the defending Invitational champions, and newcomer Est Cola will join the three local club teams to compete in this conference. ^{[4] [5]}

Qualification method		Date	Berths	Qualifier(s)
2024 PVL Reinforced Conference semifinalists		August 24 and 27, 2024 (Quarterfinals)	4 2	Creamline Cool Smashers
				Akari Chargers (withdrew)
				Cignal HD Spikers
				PLDT High Speed Hitters (withdrew)
Invited PVL teams		September 2, 2024 (announced)	0 1	Chery Tiggo Crossovers (declined) Petro Gazz Angels (declined) Capital1 Solar Spikers (declined) Farm Fresh Foxies
Foreign guest teams		August 30–31, 2024 (announced)	2	Est Cola (Thailand)
				Kurashiki Ablaze (Japan)

Participating teams

2024 Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference
Abbr.	Team	Affiliation	Head coach	Team captain
Local teams
CHD	Cignal HD Spikers	Cignal TV, Inc.	Shaq Delos Santos	Frances Molina
CCS	Creamline Cool Smashers	Republic Biscuit Corporation	Sherwin Meneses	Michele Gumabao (interim)
FFF	Farm Fresh Foxies	Farm Fresh Philippine International / Strong Group Athletics	Shota Sato	Louie Romero
Foreign guest teams
EST	Est Cola	Sermsuk Public Co. Ltd. / Thailand U20	Wanna Buakaew	Kanokporn Sangthong
KUR	Kurashiki Ablaze	Ablaze Co., Ltd. / V.League (Japan)	Hideo Suzuki	Saya Taniguchi

Venues

Regular venues

Preliminaries		Finals
Pasay	Pasig	Quezon City
SM Mall of Asia Arena	PhilSports Arena	Araneta Coliseum
Capacity: 20,000	Capacity: 10,000	Capacity: 20,000

PVL on Tour venues

Preliminaries
Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa Sports Complex
Capacity: 5,700

Transactions

National team players

The following players are part of the Philippine national team that played at the 2024 AVC Women's Challenge Cup, 2024 FIVB Women's Volleyball Challenger Cup and the 2024 SEA Women's V.League. They are therefore excluded from the previous Reinforced Conference, and were expected to remain unavailable for the whole duration of the Invitational Conference. ^{[6] [7]} However on September 9 they were allowed to rejoin their clubs, ^[8] after the national team played friendly matches with Saga Hisamitsu Springs on September 7 and 8. ^[9]

Team	Player/s
Cignal HD Spikers	Vanie Gandler	Dawn Macandili-Catindig
Creamline Cool Smashers	Jema Galanza	—

Foreign guest players

These foreign guest players participated in the reinforced conference. Each team is only allowed to have one foreign player and can only replace them mid-conference if they suffer from injuries or if the player (not the team) abandons their commitment. ^[10] The teams also have the option to keep or replace their reinforcements to play in this conference.

Team	Foreign player	Moving from	Ref.
Cignal HD Spikers	María José Pérez	Alexandria Sporting Club	[11]
Creamline Cool Smashers	Erica Staunton	Georgia Bulldogs	[12]
Farm Fresh Foxies	Asaka Tamaru	Zus Coffee Thunderbelles	[13]

Format

The following format will be conducted for the entirety of the conference:

Preliminary Round

1. Single round-robin format
2. Teams are ranked using the FIVB Ranking System.
3. The 3rd and 4th ranked teams will advance to the bronze medal match.
4. The 1st and 2nd ranked teams will advance to the gold medal match.

Finals

1. All games are knockout matches.
2. Bronze medal: 3rd ranked team vs. 4th ranked team
3. Gold medal: 1st ranked team vs. 2nd ranked team

Pool standing procedure

• First, teams are ranked by the number of matches won.
• If the number of matches won is tied, the tied teams are then ranked by match points, wherein:
  • Match won 3–0 or 3–1: 3 match points for the winner, 0 match points for the loser.
  • Match won 3–2: 2 match points for the winner, 1 match point for the loser.
• In case of any further ties, the following criteria shall be used:
  • Set ratio: the number of sets won divided by number of sets lost.
  • Point ratio: the number of points scored divided by the number of points allowed.
  • Head-to-head standings: any remaining tied teams are ranked based on the results of head-to-head matches involving the teams in question.

Preliminary round

• All times are Philippine Standard Time (UTC+08:00).

Ranking

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	L	Pts	SW	SL	SR	SPW	SPL	SPR	Qualification
1	Creamline Cool Smashers	4	4	0	12	12	2	6.000	347	270	1.285	Championship match
2	Cignal HD Spikers	4	3	1	8	10	5	2.000	348	307	1.134
3	Kurashiki Ablaze	4	2	2	7	9	7	1.286	373	364	1.025	3rd place match
4	Est Cola	4	1	3	2	4	11	0.364	292	352	0.830
5	Farm Fresh Foxies	4	0	4	1	2	12	0.167	238	333	0.715

Source: Premier Volleyball League

Match results

Date	Time	Venue		Score		Set 1	Set 2	Set 3	Set 4	Set 5	Total	Report
Sep 4	13:00	PSA	Est Cola	1–3	Kurashiki Ablaze	20–25	18–25	25–23	21–25		84–98	P2
Sep 5	16:00	PSA	Kurashiki Ablaze	3–0	Farm Fresh Foxies	25–13	25–16	25–16			75–45	P2
Sep 6	14:00	SRSC	Est Cola	0–3	Creamline Cool Smashers	13–25	12–25	15–25			40–75	P2
Sep 6	16:00	SRSC	Cignal HD Spikers	3–0	Farm Fresh Foxies	25–16	25–10	25–18			75–44	P2
Sep 8	16:00	MOA	Cignal HD Spikers	3–0	Est Cola	25–23	27–25	25–12			77–60	P2
Sep 8	18:00	MOA	Creamline Cool Smashers	3–1	Kurashiki Ablaze	25–22	25–22	26–28	25–21		101–93	P2
Sep 9	16:00	MOA	Farm Fresh Foxies	2–3	Est Cola	25–22	17–25	25–19	20–25	15–17	102–108	P2
Sep 9	18:00	MOA	Creamline Cool Smashers	3–1	Cignal HD Spikers	25–18	29–27	17–25	25–20		96–90	P2
Sep 11	16:00	PSA	Farm Fresh Foxies	0–3	Creamline Cool Smashers	15–25	13–25	19–25			47–75	P2
Sep 11	18:00	PSA	Cignal HD Spikers	3–2	Kurashiki Ablaze	25–23	19–25	25–23	22–25	15–11	106–107	P2

Final round

• All times are Philippine Standard Time (UTC+08:00).

3rd place match

Date	Time	Venue		Score		Set 1	Set 2	Set 3	Set 4	Set 5	Total	Report
Sep 12	16:00	SAC	Est Cola	0–3	Kurashiki Ablaze	22–25	24–26	20–25			66–76	P2

Championship match

Date	Time	Venue		Score		Set 1	Set 2	Set 3	Set 4	Set 5	Total	Report
Sep 12	18:00	SAC	Cignal HD Spikers	2–3	Creamline Cool Smashers	25–21	17–25	25–20	24–26	13–15	104–107	P2

Final standing

Rank Team Creamline Cool Smashers Cignal HD Spikers Kurashiki Ablaze 4 Est Cola 5 Farm Fresh Foxies

2024 PVL Invitational champions Creamline Cool Smashers Tenth title Team roster Alyssa Valdez (c), Kyle Negrito, Floremel Rodriguez, Risa Sato, Jeanette Panaga, Michele Gumabao, Ella de Jesus, Lorie Bernardo, Pau Soriano, Kyla Atienza, Denden Lazaro-Revilla, Bea de Leon, Theo Bea Bonafe, Rizza Mandapat, Rosemarie Vargas, Jema Galanza, Bernadeth Pons, Mafe Galanza, Tots Carlos, Erica Staunton, Aleiah Torres Head coach Sherwin Meneses

Awards and medalists

Awards

Award	Player	Team	Ref.
Conference Most Valuable Player	Michele Gumabao	Creamline	[14] [15]
Finals Most Valuable Player	Kyle Negrito	Creamline
1st Best Outside Spiker	María José Pérez	Cignal
2nd Best Outside Spiker	Erica Staunton	Creamline
1st Best Middle Blocker	Jacqueline Acuña	Cignal
2nd Best Middle Blocker	Low Mei Cing	Kurashiki
Best Opposite Spiker	Saya Taniguchi	Kurashiki
Best Setter	Kyle Negrito	Creamline
Best Libero	Kalyarat Khamwong	Est Cola

Medalists

Gold	Silver	Bronze
Creamline Cool Smashers Alyssa Valdez (c) Kyle Negrito Floremel Rodriguez Risa Sato Jeanette Panaga Michele Gumabao Ella de Jesus Lorie Bernardo Pau Soriano Kyla Atienza (L) Denden Lazaro-Revilla (L) Bea De Leon Theo Bea Bonafe Rizza Mandapat Rosemarie Vargas Jema Galanza Bernadeth Pons Maria Fe Galanza Tots Carlos Erica Staunton (I) Aleiah Torres	Cignal HD Spikers Frances Molina (c) Glaudine Troncoso Roselyn Doria Angelique Dionela (L) Geneveve Casugod Vanie Gandler Rochelle Lalongisip Jovelyn Fernandez Judith Abil (L) Toni Basas Jacqueline Acuña Gyzelle Sy Angelei Jingco María José Pérez (I) Ria Meneses Dawn Macandili-Catindig (L) Gel Cayuna	Kurashiki Ablaze Saya Taniguchi (c) Wako Omura Hiroko Morimoto Kyoka Ohshima Kaoru Takahashi (L) Akane Hiraoka Yukino Yano Miho Kawamura Reina Fujiwara Low Mei Cing (I) Saki Tanabe Takio Kokoro Nana Fujimura (L) Tsuji Ayano Mami Gondo
Head coach: Sherwin Meneses	Head coach: Shaq Delos Santos	Head coach: Hideo Suzuki

See also

• 2024 Spikers' Turf Invitational Conference

References

1. Agcaoili, Lance (September 1, 2024). "PVL: PLDT set to skip Invitationals, replacement to be announced". Philippine Daily Inquirer . Retrieved September 3, 2024.
2. Agcaoili, Lance (September 2, 2024). "PVL: Farm Fresh replaces PLDT in Invitational Conference". Philippine Daily Inquirer . Retrieved September 3, 2024.
3. Isaga, JR (September 3, 2024). "Unrelated to controversy: Top-seeded PVL team Akari pulls out of Invitationals due to injuries". Rappler . Retrieved September 3, 2024.
4. Garcia, John Mark (August 30, 2024). "Kurashiki Ablaze returning to defend PVL Invitational title". Sports Interactive Network Philippines . Retrieved August 31, 2024.
5. Garcia, John Mark (August 31, 2024). "Thai team EST Cola makes Philippine return in PVL Invitational". Sports Interactive Network Philippines . Retrieved August 31, 2024.
6. "10 PVL stars called up for national team" (Press release). Premier Volleyball League. May 15, 2024. Archived from the original on May 15, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
7. Agcaoili, Lance (August 15, 2024). "Alas Pilipinas players ruled out of PVL Reinforced, Invitationals". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 1, 2024.
8. Garcia, John (September 9, 2024). "Alas Pilipinas stars given green light to rejoin PVL clubs". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
9. "Alas Pilipinas Women swept by SAGA Hisamitsu Springs in pair of friendly games". One Sports. September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
10. Valencia, Justin (July 16, 2024). "Nxled vs. Galeries match spurs clarification on PVL import policies". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
11. Agcaoili, Lance (June 26, 2024). "PVL: MJ Perez returns to power Cignal in Reinforced Conference". Philippine Daily Inquirer . Archived from the original on June 26, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
12. Agcaoili, Lance (June 20, 2024). "PVL: Creamline taps Erica Staunton as import for Reinforced tilt". Philippine Daily Inquirer . Archived from the original on June 20, 2024. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
13. Demigillo, Kiko (September 4, 2024). "PVL: Farm Fresh adds Japanese spiker Asaka Tamaru ahead of Invitational Conference". One Sports. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
14. Agcaoili, Lance (September 12, 2024). "Creamline's Michele Gumabao is PVL Invitationals MVP". Philippine Daily Inquirer . Retrieved September 12, 2024.
15. Dannug, Jonash (September 12, 2024). "Kyle Negrito's brilliant play secures Grand Slam, Finals MVP honors". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved September 12, 2024.