EJ Laure, Nxled get much-needed boost from rare win

Nxled Chameleons’ EJ Laure in the PVL All-Filipino Conference.–PVL PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Coming from a contender team, EJ Laure is thrilled to finally see the hard work of the Nxled Chameleons come to fruition as they earned their first win after a 0-8 start in the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference.

Laure played her best game as a Chameleon so far, unloading 14 kills and five blocks for 19 points in Nxled’s 25-20, 19-25, 25-14, 25-23 win over Galeries Tower that ended a winless start on Saturday at Philsports Arena.

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READ: PVL: Nxled stops 15-game slide at expense of Galeries

“All the teams I’ve been to really want to win. During practice, you can really see how badly they want to win,” Laure told Inquirer Sports. “Their moves are really different, and we applied that in the game today.”

The former University of Santo Tomas star, who parted ways with Chery Tiggo before the new season, was relieved to help her teammates end a 15-game skid dating back to July last year in the opener of Reinforced Conference against Galeries.

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Nxled Chameleons celebrate during a win over Galeries Tower Highrisers in the PVL All-Filipino Conference.–PVL PHOTO

“Maybe [we’re boosted] now. We won already. That’s why, and we really need to work even harder,” she said after making nine digs and eight excellent receptions.

Italian coach Ettore Guidetti lauded the addition of Laure to his young squad, believing the veteran wing spiker has more to bring to the table.

READ: EJ Laure makes Nxled debut, working ‘double time’ amid busy schedule

“The very good thing is not only about the game itself, she’s raising her level and obviously the level of the team every day. Basically, I think that’s she around 60 percent of her potential, so I am expecting to continue like this,” Guidetti said.

“I am seeing every single day the team and EJ working hard. I cannot forecast when the development will come. But she’s been working hard.”

With a 1-8 record tied with Galeries and Capital 1, the Chameleons are going to face one of the top three squads including the hottest team Creamline (8-0) and Petro Gazz (7-1) in the one-game qualification round, where the six winners advance to the best-of-three quarterfinals, while the losing squads will be relegated in the play-in round to fight for the last two tickets.

The 27-year-old Laure said the format is interesting, proving that the ball is still round despite their record but their focus is on their remaining preliminary games. 

“The ball is still round, and we’ll only know in the upcoming games,” she said. “One game at a time because, of course, we still need to [improve] in our upcoming games.”

Nxled battles Choco Mucho on Thursday next week and Petro Gazz on February 20.