UNIVERSITY of Sto. Tomas star EJ Laure vowed to continue the aggressive play as the Tigresses face defending champion La Salle on Wednesday in the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball tournament at The Arena in San Juan.
The Tigresses are coming off a four-set win over Far Eastern University, with Laure dropping 20 points, and they will again lean on the 19-year-old hitter as they look to strengthen their Final Four bid.
The match starts at 4 p.m.
Ateneo (10-2) is on top followed by La Salle (9-2) and UST (7-4).
“Siguro sabi din kasi ni coach (Kungfu Reyes) na kailangan namin mag-step up kahit sino sa amin so ‘yun ang nasa utak ko,” said Laure.
Laure is confident UST can return to the semifinals after four years of absence.
“‘Yun talaga ang goal namin na makapasok sa Final Four. Ilang years na kaming ‘di nakakapasok so ‘yun ang nasa utak namin,” she said.
La Salle leads the league in blocks, sets and receptions, while UST leads in digs.
“Siguro we’ll treat La Salle as a normal game lang na parang ‘di sila No. 2 or No. 1 so hindi namin ipe-pressure ang sarili namin,” she said.
From a 1-3 start to the season, the Tigresses won six of their last seven matches and Laure believes that all their effort in training are finally paying off.
“Grabe din ang tine-training namin at grabe ang double time namin sa depensa at saka sa palo,” she said.