LA SALLE showed it has its short-term priorities straight than to look too far ahead on its long-term objectives.
Rather than getting caught up in the noise of an unblemished record and a looming season sweep, the Lady Spikers were more concerned about something far more immediate on Wednesday: making sure they wouldn’t get reverse-swept.
That proved crucial as La Salle survived a furious Far Eastern University fightback, hacking out a 25-17, 25-22, 23-25, 19-25, 15-10 escape to stretch its perfect run to 11-0 in the UAAP Season 88 women’s volleyball tournament.
READ: La Salle now twice-to-beat after halting FEU charge yet again
But inside the Taft camp, the focus was never about protecting the zero in the loss column.
Assistant coach Noel Orcullo bared that the team has been constantly reminded to avoid putting unnecessary pressure on themselves, especially with their spotless slate drawing more attention by the day.
“‘Yun nga ‘yung laging sinasabi namin sa kanila at sinasabi ni Coach Ramil de Jesus na kahit wala tayong talo, ‘wag nating i-pressure ‘yung sarili natin,” said Orcullo.
“‘Wag tayong mag-dwell du’n sa kailangan nating ma-sweep ‘yung season. Basta tayo, maglaro lang, one game at a time.
“Kung anuman ‘yung in-ensayo natin, kung ano ‘yung pinaghahandaan natin, kung sinuman ‘yung mga kalaban natin, mag-focus tayo du’n.
“‘Wag nating isipin na kailangang ma-sweep natin ‘to. Mag-focus lang tayo sa kung ano ‘yung inumpisahan natin.”
That approach was put to the test after La Salle appeared headed for a routine win, only for FEU to flip the script and force a decider.
The Lady Tamaraws snatched the third and fourth sets behind their relentless floor defense and timely hits, suddenly putting the pressure on the league leaders.
For middle blocker Amie Provido, it boiled down to one thing when the match reached the breaking point.
“‘Yung puso talaga,” she said.
“Ahead na kami ng two sets, nakuha pa ‘yung third and fourth sa’min. Kaya puso na talaga ‘yung nagpanali sa’min nu’ng fifth set and very important talaga siya for us.”
La Salle responded just in time, regaining its composure in the fifth set to shut the door on any thoughts of a collapse.
Sweeping statement sent
Still, even in victory, the Lady Spikers refused to complicate things.
Reigning MVP Angel Canino stressed the importance of staying grounded amid both adversity and expectations.
“Kailangang hindi kami ‘yung magpa-complex sa lahat ng nangyayari sa team namin,” she said. “Kailangan din talaga naming tiyagain lahat-lahat pa ng pwede pang mangyari.”
In the end, La Salle walked away with its 11th straight win.
But more importantly, it walked away without letting a reverse sweep slip through its fingers, a far bigger win than keeping its perfect record intact.
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