Rondina-Pons duo leads PH bets in Beach Volleyball World Tour

MANILA, Philippines – For the second straight year, the Philippines will host the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour one-star event on May 23 to 26 at the scenic Boracay Island.

The four-day tournament organized by Beach Volleyball Republic has attracted a total of 20 women’s and 28 men’s teams from 17 countries.

University of Santo Tomas stalwart Sisi Rondina will team up with former Far Eastern University star Bernadeth Pons as the duo leads 4 Philippine women’s teams in the main draw.

The tandems of Dij Rodriguez and Bea Tan, Jackie Estoquia and DM Demontaño, and Fiola Ceballos and Patty Orendain will also see action. A fifth pair, Babylove Barbon and Gen Eslapor, will go through the qualifiers.

Air Force’s Ranran Abdilla and Jesse Lopez will spearhead the country’s men’s campaign, which also includes collegiate standouts James Buytrago and Krung Arbasto, and Cebu’s Mike Abria and Jade Becaldo.

Rondina, a four-time UAAP beach volleyball MVP who also steered UST to 3 straight league crowns, looks to sustain her stellar form with Pons right after the Tigresses’ title bid in the UAAP women’s indoor volleyball this week.

Tan and Rodriguez, meanwhile, have won 3 BVR on Tour legs this year, while Barbon and Eslapor ruled the Dumaguete leg last month.  

Abdilla and Lopez won the first 3 legs this season before Abria and Becaldo topped the recently concluded Lingayen edition. 

In an efforts to promote sustainable sports tourism, BVR has partnered with the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force, the municipality of Malay, and White House Beach Resort for this prestigious event.

The country’s premier beach volleyball circuit is coming off successful legs in Puerto Galera, Santa Fe, Bantayan Island in Cebu, Dumaguete City and Lingayen, Pangasinan.

Last year, the Philippines made its way to the international beach volleyball map by hosting the prestigious Beach World Tour held at Sands SM By The Bay where Rondina and Dzi Gervacio finished 5th, the country’s highest finish in the women’s competition.

Rondina, a Compostela, Cebu native, along with Iloilo’s Estoquia and Demontaño are in their second tour of duty for the Philippines in the Beach World Tour.  Also making their back-to-back stints in the men’s side are Abdilla and Becaldo.  

In the Manila edition last year, Japan’s Ayumi Kusano and Takemi Nishibori topped the women’s division, while Germany’s Max-Jonas Karpa and Milan Sievers of Germany ruled the men’s side.

The main draw for women and men is set on May 24. The quarterfinals is scheduled on May 25, while the semifinals and finals will be played on May 26.

The qualifiers will be held on May 23.

For more updates, follow BVR’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts and the Beach World Tour’s official website at http://worldtour.2019.fivb.com. – Rappler.com