Capital1 now brandishes hard-hitting Big 3 after signing Gandler, Santos

Capital1 Solar Spikers’ owners and its newest recruits Vanie Gandler, Erika Santos and Jaja Maraguinot. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

Capital1 has assembled one of the most dangerous and promising trios in the Premier Volleyball League, with MVPs Vanie Gandler and Erika Santos joining forces with top rookie Bella Belen.

Following Cignal’s leave of absence just a week after its runner-up finish—and Gandler’s coronation as the latest All-Filipino Conference MVP—the Super Spikers’ deadly one-two punch found a new home at Capital1 during the blockbuster signing press conference at GameVille on Wednesday.

From being one of the league’s youngest clubs, the Solar Spikers instantly transformed into legitimate contenders, with Belen—fresh off a stellar rookie campaign that earned her Best Outside Spiker honors in the All-Filipino Conference—teaming up with two of Cignal’s breakout stars.

With three prolific scorers now sharing the floor, Gandler sees the setup less as a challenge and more as a strength.

“It’s a good problem to have. I don’t think it’s something we need to adjust to too much. What’s important is learning how to cover for each other,” said Gandler. “There will be games where I might struggle more than the others or maybe Bella will struggle, so it’s really about having each other’s backs.”

Belen, who had been recruiting Gandler, Santos and other Cignal players during their stint together in the All-Star Game in Candon City, was grateful her efforts eventually convinced the MVP duo to join her squad.

“As a competitive player, they used to be my opponents, so my mindset before was always, ‘I have to beat them,’” Belen said. “But now that they’re my teammates, my mindset has changed into figuring out how I can raise my own level so I can complement what they already bring to the team and contribute even more.”

“I’m really excited to see how we’ll play together as a team because I’ve always faced them as opponents before. With Ate Vanie, I was only briefly teammates with her on the national team and we weren’t always together on the court. And with Ate Erika and Ate Jaja, this will really be my first time playing with them.”

And Belen believes their troika could unlock even more from each other.

“Volleyball is a team effort. The more players who can score, the easier it is for the team to win,” she said.