Improving chemistry a priority for Taka Minowa, Akari

MANILA, Philippines — Japanese coach Taka Minowa and Ivy Lacsina are embracing the challenges that come with their transfer to the Akari Chargers, starting with improving their campaign in the 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference.

After being shipped from the Nxled Chameleons, Lacsina shone in her first game as a Charger, pouring in a game-high 20 points to help her team overcome the Capital1 Solar Spikers, 25-18, 27-25, 22-25, 25-14, in their first Pool B game on Thursday at Philspors Arena.

It was also a winning debut for Minowa, who was part of the deal with Cams Victoria, Kamille Cal, and Dani Ravena, to fill in the needs of the sister teams.

SCHEDULE: 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference

The Japanese coach admitted it was hard to leave his first team, which he believed was doing better after finishing eighth in the PVL All-Filipino–just a rank lower than Akari. 

“In Nxled and Akari, when we compare the potential, it’s really different. Nxled [was] doing better, that’s why they were able to make it to rank eight last conference. With Akari, I can make it more tactical because of the potential with really good players,” said Minowa.

But now that he’s with the more stacked Chargers, led by Ced Domingo, Grethcel Soltones, and Michelle Cobb, he is eager to unlock their potential by improving the squad’s chemistry, especially with Akari import Oly Okaro.

“Now’s the time to make it like one team. We just started. I cannot expect anything. We still have to keep working,” he said. “We need to maximize this time to be better and also have a connection with Oly. As a coach, this is my purpose: the combination with Oly and integrating her with Akari.”

Okaro only had a limited training time but she showed a glimpse of what she could offer to Akari, finishing with 16 points off 14 attacks, one block, and an ace. 

READ: PVL: Joining familiar names makes it easy for Ivy Lacsina at Akari

Lacsina, for her part, is grateful to be with Minowa in their transfer as her coach makes the transition easier. 

“The only adjustments I had to make when I joined Akari were with my teammates. We have veterans here, so building connections is really important. It became easier because Cams, Dani, and Kamille, who I’ve played with before, helped me,” said Lacsina.

“Coach Taka also assigned me to be the game captain. So even if I make errors, I can’t show my teammates that I’m frustrated or have low morale. My mindset is that I need to lead the team,” she added.

Lacsina seeks to improve her game ahead of Tuesday’s match against a bounce-back-seeking Choco Mucho side, which got swept by Cignal.

“We know they are one of the top teams, so we will work even harder, especially on what we lacked in this game. We will face them knowing that we can do it and we will give our best,” she said.