Cignal’s Vanie Gandler in the PVL All-Filipino Conference.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Vanie Gandler believes teamwork has been crucial to short-handed Cignal’s success after claiming the No. 3 seed ahead of the qualifying round of the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference.

Gandler dropped 15 points to lead Cignal’s sweep of Akari, 25-17, 25-15, 25-21, and finished the first round with a three-game winning streak for an 8-3 record on Tuesday at Philsports Arena.

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Cignal battles the No. 10 seed, which will either be Galeries Tower, Nxled, or Capital1.

READ: PVL: Cignal claims No. 3 spot with sweep of Akari

Vanie Gandler on Cignal’s winning streak and Ishie Lalongisip’s rise. #PVL2025 @INQUIRERSports pic.twitter.com/fxGYknbXo6

— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) February 18, 2025

Despite being down to just 12 players after Ces Molina and Riri Meneses’ midseason exit, Gandler is proud of how the HD Spikers worked together and stepped up to fill in the void

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“[It’s] just total team effort. I always say this because it’s true. Every practice, every game, the team just helps each other, it doesn’t matter who it is, the coaches, the players, everyone is really helping each other with the best of our ability,” Gandler told Inquirer Sports.

Gandler lauded her fellow outside spiker Ishie Lalongisip as the rookie has been a revelation for Cignal, shining as a starter with a 13.8-point average in the past six games.

SCHEDULE: PVL All-Filipino Conference 2024-25

“I’m so proud of Ishie. She works for this and the past two games I was having a hard time and she really stepped up big time,” said the Ateneo product. “I’m really grateful for her and I really wouldn’t be playing like this if she wasn’t here to help.”

As they eye a quarterfinal berth in the qualifying round, Gandler vows to take her game to the next level in the climax of the six-month tournament.

“You can expect that I’m gonna try my best to keep improving and make the adjustments that I need to make and I’ll start in practices. I’m really gonna work even harder now,” Gandler said.