THE Ateneo Lady Eagles said they were pleased to score a quick finish to the UAAP volleyball title series not as a statement, but because they wanted their coach to finally return home after a long season.
The Lady Eagles bared coach Anusorn Bundit had been longing to return to his home in Thailand and be with his family, which explains why the Lady Eagles chanted “Uuwi na ’yan” after completing their victory over La Salle.
The Lady Eagles had a 20-day break from finishing an elimination-round sweep to the first match of the finals, but showed no sign of rust and capped the unbeaten run to the title with another straight-sets win over arch rival La Salle.
[See Sweep 16 for Ateneo as Lady Eagles cap unbeaten run with domination of La Salle Lady Spikers]
“We played for him today kasi he really wanted to go home because he misses his family,” said season MVP Alyssa Valdez.
“It’s been a while since he went home,” Valdez said. “We think that he misses his family every time na linoloko namin siya.”
[See Mixed emotions for Alyssa Valdez as Ateneo wins final match with Denden Lazaro]
Bundit also drew some laughs on the sidelines, not because of some new dance moves, but because the Lady Eagles tried in vain to give him a victory ride.
“Na-off balance po,” said Ateneo star Alyssa Valdez, in explaining what happened. “Mabigat po si coach Tai.”
Ateneo bested La Salle’s 14-0 record in 2004 where the Lady Spikers won the title outright after sweeping the elimination round. Rule changes were made in 2007, giving teams a thrice-to-beat advantage in the finals if they win all matches in the eliminations.
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