Jema Galanza

Jessica Margarett "Jema" Casidsid Galanza (born November 28, 1996) is a Filipino volleyball player and former captain of the Adamson Soaring Lady Falcons volleyball team in the UAAP and a National Team Member. She also played for the Laoag Power Smashers during the 2016 SVL Reinforced Conference and has become one of the top spikers for the Creamline Cool Smashers since 2017 in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL).[1][2]

"Galanza" redirects here. For the basketball player, see Bong Galanza.
In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Casidsid and the surname or paternal family name is Galanza.
Jema Galanza
Personal information
Full nameJessica Margarett Casidsid Galanza
Born (1996-11-28) November 28, 1996
HometownSan Pedro, Laguna, Philippines
Height5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Weight61 kg (134 lb)
College / UniversityAdamson University
Volleyball information
PositionOutside hitter
Current clubCreamline Cool Smashers
Number15-23
Career
YearsTeams
2016Laoag Power Smashers
2017–Creamline Cool Smashers
2021Rebisco Philippines
National team
2018–presentPhilippines

Personal life

Galanza was born and raised in San Pedro, Laguna, Philippines to Jesse and Fe Galanza. She went to San Pedro Relocation Center National High School, San Pedro, Laguna and earned her bachelor's degree at Adamson University. She has three siblings and her youngest sister, Maria Fe "Mafe" Galanza,[3] played for the University of Santo Tomas' Golden Tigresses.

In March 2018, pictures of Galanza went viral as netizens could not get over her photogenic[4] face and smile while playing volleyball for her school.[5]

Galanza is one of the most-followed streamers in KUMU, where she gained at least 85,000 followers in less than a month since joining the streaming app in September 2021.[6] In an out-of-town game where Galanza was being wildly cheered, she told reporters that her followers were an added motivation to have stellar plays.[7]

Career

In 2013, Galanza debuted as a reserve player of Adamson University in the beach volleyball tournament.[8] She teamed up with star players Bang Pineda and Amanda Villanueva, and they completed a two-game championship sweep of the UAAP Season 76 women’s beach volleyball tournament against University of Santo Tomas.[9]

During her collegiate years, she played with the Adamson Lady Falcons and was the team captain in UAAP Season 80. Galanza is playing for the Creamline Cool Smashers in Premier Volleyball League along with Alyssa Valdez, Jia Morado, Michele Gumabao, and Tots Carlos.[10][11]

In 2018, Galanza played for the Philippine women's volleyball team[12] that competed in the 2018 Asian Women's Volleyball Cup held at Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.[13] During the 2018 Premier Volleyball League Open Conference, Galanza received the 2nd best outside spiker award[14] and together with the Creamline Cool Smashers, eventually won the championship.[15]

During the 2019 Premier Volleyball League Open Conference, she bagged the 1st Best Outside Spiker and Most Valuable Player of the Conference awards and won the third PVL championship title of her current team Creamline Cool Smashers.[16]

In 2021, Galanza was invited to the training pool of the Philippine national volleyball team who would compete in the 2021 Asian Women's Club Volleyball Championship in Thailand from October 01 to 07, 2021.[17]

In 2022, Galanza was again called up in the final line-up of the Philippine national volleyball team and was set for her first SEA games appearance in Hanoi, Vietnam in May 2022.[18]

Eat Bulaga co-host Allan K asked Galanza in her noontime show appearance in August 2021 if she can accept an acting role and she answered in the affirmative; in fact, the genre she wanted was comedy.[19] She ended up starring in Day Zero, an action-horror movie that premiered at a film fest in Switzerland on July 3, 2022, with lead actors Brandon Vera, Joey Marquez, Mary Jean Lastimosa, and Ricci Rivero, among others.[20]

There is no stopping Galanza's professional volleyball onslaught from scoring her career-high 28 points in the Adamson win over UST in the UAAP way back in 2016 to creating a highly unusual play of five straight points for the Cool Smashers via her spikes as part of the 2022 TV5 highlights shown on One Sports half a decade later, not to mention a triple-double of 17 points, 18 excellent digs, and 13 excellent receptions in a thrilling Creamline-Chery Tiggo finals match in the PVL in 2021.[21][22][23]

The Cool Smashers' top two highest pointers, Galanza and eventual MVP Carlos, led the team in clinching another crown in the 2022 Premier Volleyball League Invitational Conference at the expense of KingWhale Taipei in a knockout final.[24]

An AVC veteran, Galanza helped the Creamline-powered Philippine National Team take a gallant stand against five-time champion China on August 23, 2022, and the next day, she topscored with 21 points while Carlos and Gumabao added 14 and 13 points in the first win of the host Philippines over Iran.[25][26][27] Galanza also came up clutch, scoring 18 points in the last two sets of their win in the AVC Cup classification match against Australia.[28]

The 2019 PVL MVP Galanza, who converted the championship point and topscored for the Creamline Cool Smashers in Game 3 of the All-Filipino Conference Finals against the Petro Gazz Angels on March 30, 2023, now has three Best Spiker honors to her name.[29][30]

Awards

Individual

Collegiate

Club Team

References
  1. Escarlote, Mark (June 13, 2017). "Cool Smashers out to claim third place trophy". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  2. Velasco, Jillian (August 13, 2020). "From benchwarmer to MVP: Jema Galanza shines as a pro". Rappler. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  3. Albelda, Josiah (January 13, 2018). "Mafe Galanza hopes to follow sister's footsteps in the UAAP". Akari Sports. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
  4. "A very photogenic volleyball player - Girl". 9GAG. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  5. Flores, Migs (March 10, 2018). "Incredibly photogenic Jema Galanza says viral pictures just show her enjoying volleyball". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  6. "Jema Galanza achieves Kumu milestone | FASTBREAK.com.ph". September 21, 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  7. Agcaoili, Lance (October 22, 2022). "PVL: Jema Galanza gets boost from fans, family in hometown game". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  8. "From benchwarmer to MVP: Jema Galanza shines as pro". Rappler. August 13, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  9. "Adamson ends UST's two-year reign, regains women's beach volley title". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  10. Escarlote, Mark (September 13, 2018). "PVL Open Conference: Cool Smashers search for another title". ABS-CBN Sports. Archived from the original on September 14, 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
  11. Velasco, Jillian (July 28, 2022). "Creamline reaches PVL Invitational semis, leaves Chery Tiggo at bottom". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  12. Escarlote, Mark (September 7, 2018). "Galanza, Nabor earn National team spots". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
  13. Escarlote, Mark (September 14, 2018). "AVC Asian Cup: Team PHI marches into battle". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
  14. Escarlote, Mark (December 8, 2018). "PVL: Valdez earns Open Conference MVP honors". ABS-CBN Sports. Archived from the original on December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  15. Escarlote, Mark (December 8, 2018). "PVL: Cool Smashers crush Lady Eagles, rule Open Conference". ABS-CBN Sports. Archived from the original on December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  16. Cabildo, Leigh Nald (November 9, 2019). "Jema Galanza bags 2019 PVL Open Conference MVP". Rappler. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
  17. "Galanza grateful to be in national team pool". ESPN.com. August 29, 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  18. Agcaoili, Lance (March 15, 2022). "Alyssa Valdez, Jaja Santiago lead PH volleyball team for SEA Games". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  19. "Jema Galanza open to joining showbiz". Fastbreak PH. August 23, 2021. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
  20. "Day Zero (2022)". IMDb.
  21. "Jema Galanza tows Adamson past UST in 5 sets". INQUIRER.net. February 3, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  22. Isaga, JR (August 11, 2021). "Creamline survives late Chery Tiggo rally in 5-set finals thriller". Rappler. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  23. Agcaoili, Lance (July 29, 2022). "PVL: Jema Galanza's 'do it all' mindset fuels Creamline push". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  24. Morales, Luisa (August 14, 2022). "Creamline schools KingWhale to clinch PVL Invitational crown". Philstar. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  25. Verora, Levi (August 24, 2022). "Galanza 'proud' of PH's mindset vs China in AVC Cup". Sports Bytes Philippines. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  26. Reyes, Kate (August 24, 2022). "Jema Galanza stands tall to lead a gallant PH stand vs China". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  27. Agcaoili, Lance (August 24, 2022). "AVC Cup: Jema Galanza wills Creamline-PH past Iran for first win". Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  28. Agcaoili, Lance (August 28, 2022). "'All heart': Jema Galanza plays through pain to lead Creamline-PH rally in AVC Cup". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
  29. Lance, Agcaoili (March 30, 2023). "Creamline beats Petro Gazz anew to win fourth PVL All-Filipino title". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  30. Bolima, Martin Dale (March 30, 2023). "Tots Carlos bags third MVP as Creamline dominates PVL All-Filipino awards list". Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  31. Agcaoili, Lance (March 31, 2023). "Eager to finish the job for Creamline, Jema Galanza showcases reliability anew". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
  32. Reyes, Marc Anthony (April 8, 2022). "PVL: Creamline completes sweep to claim Open Conference title". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
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