Sisi Rondina (left) prepares to receive the ball as Bernadeth Pons looks on during the game against Khylem Progella and Sofia Pagara in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour (BPT) Futures Nuvali on Friday (May 2, 2025) in Sta. Rosa City, Laguna. Rondina and Pons won, 21-17, 18-21, 15-12. (Contributed photo)
Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons came through in the clutch, showing poise in the deciding set to edge fellow Filipinas Khylem Progella and Sofia Pagara, 21-17, 18-21, 15-12, on Friday at the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour (BPT) Futures Nuvali in Santa Rosa City, Laguna.
Under the sweltering heat, Rondina and her longtime partner Pons battled past the gritty UST duo to notch their first victory in Pool A.
“We give it our all—no pressure, no expectations,” said Pons. “We had very little time to prepare, so we just play to the best of our abilities. This is all for the country.”
The tandem, bronze medalists in the 2019 and 2022 Southeast Asian Games, remain committed to their beach volleyball campaign as they aim for redemption in the upcoming SEA Games.
“We’ve committed to training until December because we want to bounce back in the SEA Games,” Pons added.
In other women’s matches, Filipinas Honey Grace Cordero and Kat Epa fell to Lithuania’s Ieva Dumbauskaite and Gerda Gruzsinskaite, 17-21, 17-21, in Pool B of the main draw.
Cordero and Epa had earlier booked their place in the main draw with impressive wins in the qualifiers, beating Australia’s Charlotte Graham and Emma Hannagan, 21-11, 21-8, and Japan’s Keiko Urata and Minami Asano, 17-21, 21-11, 15-12.
The tournament is organized by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation, led by Ramon “Tats” Suzara, who also heads the Asian Volleyball Confederation.
In the men’s division, James Buytrago and Rancel Varga—silver medalists at the 2024 Beach Pro Tour—suffered a tough 21-23, 12-21 loss to Israel’s Tamir Hershko and River Day in Pool D.
Lerry John Francisco and Edwin Tolentino also fell short, bowing to Czech duo Tomas Semerad and Adam Miroslav Stocek, 13-21, 9-21, in Pool C.
