Grabe BINAON ni Erica Staunton! Coach Shaq na-TRAUMA kay ERICA STAUNTON #creamline #ericastaunton

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Creamline Cool Smashers’ Erica Staunton in the PVL Reinforced Conference. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Erica Staunton proved she can lead Creamline after a 20-point debut but she still seeks improvement to bounce back from a tough five-set loss to PLDT in the 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference.

Staunton stepped up for the undermanned Cool Smashers, who missed the troika of Alyssa Valdez, Tots Carlos, and Jema Galanza, pouring in 16 kills, two aces, and two blocks but the High Speed Hitters, led by Elena Samoilenko’s 34-point explosion pulled off a come-from-behind 16-25, 25-22, 24-26, 25-19, 15-12 win on Tuesday night at Philsports Arena.

“I think that we definitely can make improvements. We can be upset about the loss tonight, then starting tomorrow we focus on the next game,” said the American import, who also had 10 excellent receptions. “We definitely have things that we can work on, things that we can clean up, some things that maybe weren’t up to our standard, but they’re all things that we can take care of in training and be better for the next game.”

The former US NCAA player lauded PLDT’s defense, admitting that Philippine volleyball offers a scrappy defensive style in her first stint in Manila. 

“Offensively, I learned a lot like PLDT had incredible defense tonight so I think that I learned that next game I should be taking some smarter shots, maybe not try to swing so hard,” said Staunton. “They had some really good check balls off of me that allowed their defense to pick up off of them. Next game, I have a better feel of what I need to do for sure.”

“In the States, sometimes we’re facing bigger blocks. But teams in the Philippines have clearly made it work like the check balls that I mentioned earlier. No matter how high you think you can jump, no matter how hard you think you can hit, these blockers are getting really solid touches on it and the defense is picking it up so defensively, it’s been an adjustment,” she added.

Losing to PLDT was Creamline’s first opening day loss since the 2019 Reinforced Conference, where it fell to eventual champion Petro Gazz handled by now High Speed Hitters coaches Rald Ricafort and Arnold Laniog.

Staunton joined hands with Michele Gumabao and Bernadeth Pons with Valdez and Carlos joining  the reserve players in their Reinforced Conference opener but didn’t disclose the reason. Jema Galanza will miss the midseason tournament due to her commitment to Alas Pilipinas.

Despite the tough loss, Staunton is honored to play for the most successful and fan-favorite PVL club, promising to bounce back against Farm Fresh on Saturday.

“It was an awesome environment. I know we came up short tonight, but it was definitely unique for me. It’s just kind of experiencing the fans, how much everybody loves Creamline, and it was incredible even during challenges you can hear all of the fans chanting for Creamline,” she said.