Michelle Morente has expressed her gratitude to PLDT head coach Rald Ricafort for giving her the opportunity to make a comeback in the 2023 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference.
Morente, who last played for Army-Black Mamba in the 2022 Invitationals, found herself without a team in the season-ending Reinforced Conference last year. She spent her time training with Creamline before getting the call from the High Speed Hitters for the All-Filipino Conference.
"I just want to thank the coach because that's what I've been waiting for - someone to trust me throughout the months. I am very thankful to coach Rald because he gave me the opportunity to come back and give my best performance and all,” said Morente.
On Tuesday night, the former La Salle star helped PLDT dent Chery Tiggo's perfect record by contributing 10 points in their 25-13, 25-22, 27-25 victory at the Philsports Arena. Morente, who came off the bench in the team's opening-day loss against F2 Logistics, has started the High Speed Hitters’ last two games, both resulting in wins.
Despite her impressive performances in the past week, the former Perlas standout is still not satisfied and believes that she needs to be more consistent for the High Speed Hitters moving forward. She also vowed to help out PLDT in any way she can as they try to finally get over the hump in the All-Filipino Conference.
"I think there's still a little bit more, I feel like I need to push a bit more. Maybe I need to be more consistent. Of course, who wants errors, so I think that's really it, just be consistent and support the team," said Morente.
"If I can't score, I'll be in defense because I also know my role on the court. So if I can't score, it's okay as long as I have someone behind me. It's me and Kath [Arado]."
In their loss to F2 Logistics, Morente tallied six points and 11 excellent digs. She followed it up with an eight-point performance in the win against Army-Black Mamba last Thursday.
Morente is still looking to further improve her game and be more consistent, but her performances in the past week show that she is determined to help PLDT achieve its goals.
