MANILA, Philippines – Reigning champions De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers were on the verge of picking up their 3rd loss in the 5-set thriller against the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws on Sunday, March 18. 

The Lady Tamaraws were a set from taking the match, but the Lady Spikers converted their early lead and won the 4th set which brought the match to a deciding set. 

Being a finalist for 9 straight seasons, the Lady Spikers’ championship experiences prevailed in the 5th set as they trounced FEU with an 8-1 run capped off by Season 79 MVP Majoy Baron. 

Head coach Ramil de Jesus pointed out that his veterans made up for their lackluster performances in the 2nd and 3rd sets, as they only showed up with adjustments in the last two sets. 

“Actually no’ng 2nd and 3rd sets, sila rin ‘yung nawala eh. Kaya sabi ko walang magbubuhat nitong team kung lahat tayo mahihirapan sa adjustments ng FEU,” said De Jesus. 

(Actually in the 2nd and 3rd sets, they were the ones who went missing. That’s why I said that no one is going to carry the team if all of us are having a hard time with FEU’s adjustments.)

The Lady Spikers’ dominant 5th set heroics led them to become the first team to clinch a Final 4 spot, but there are still a lot more to improve.

“May mga unforced errors na nanggagaling sa setters, ‘yung communication inside the court, and then hindi naman siguro lahat mape-perfect pero eventually may kulang pa,” said De Jesus. 

(There were unforced errors coming from the setters, the communication inside the court, and then it’s not going to be perfect but eventually it’s still not enough.)

“May mga times na bumababa ‘yung self-confidence during the game so sabi ko ‘di dapat ganun,” he added.

(There were times that their self-confidence became low during the game and I said it shouldn’t be that way.) 

In their next match against University of the East (UE), DLSU veteran libero Dawn Macandili will be put to the test as she will be going up against Kath Arado who leads in the Best Receivers and Best Diggers category as of Sunday. 

Macandili brushed off the comparisons between her and Arado, while acknowledging Arado’s prowess in floor defense. 

“Lagi naman ang mga tao nagko-compare, so chill lang. Maglalaro lang ako na iniisip ko ‘yung team ko, paano ako makakatulong sa kanila,” said Macandili. 

(People always compare, so I just chill. I’ll play with my team in mind, how I’ll be able to help them.)

“Magaling naman talagang player si Kath. ‘Yun lang ang masasabi ko,” she added. (Kath is really a good player. That’s all I can say.)

For 10-time champion coach De Jesus, Arado is the “lifeline” of the Lady Warriors, citing that her cramps midway through the game affected UE’s performance against Adamson.

“‘Yung buhay din ng UE, talagang na kay Arado eh. No’ng medyo nag-cramps ata no’ng during the game, medyo tagilid na ‘yung UE pagdating ng 4th and 5th sets kanina,” explained De Jesus. 

(The life of UE is really with Arado. When she got cramps during the game, UE’s performance was affected in the 4th and 5th sets.)

De Jesus also traced UE’s drastic improvement, especially in character, back to their interim head coach Rod Roque. (READ: Taking the reins: Rod Roque making a difference in UE Volleyball)

“‘Yung UE since no’ng nagpalit ng coach, naiba ‘yung character ng UE. Sila ‘yung nothing to lose na hindi gano’n kadali bumitaw. Makikita mo na well-organized ‘yung floor defense. So hindi puwedeng biruin ‘yung UE, kaya dapat paghandaan din,” he said.

(Since UE changed coaches, their character has changed. They have nothing to lose so they don’t give up easily. You can see that their floor defense is well-organized. So we shouldn’t take UE lightly, we also have to prepare.)

The Lady Spikers will face the Lady Warriors on Saturday, March 24, at the Filoil Flying V Centre. – Rappler.com