FOR Angel Canino and the rest of La Salle’s celebrated ‘Batch 122,’ the UAAP Season 88 championship was never just about redemption.
It was also about giving back to the man who built the dynasty they have been tasked to fight for.
Canino revealed that their title run, just the third 16-0 season sweep in league history, served as crowning achievement for the batch composed of herself, Shevana Laput, Amie Provido, and Lyka de Leon, and as their collective gift to longtime head coach Ramil de Jesus.
READ: RDJ on his future coaching DLSU: 'Pinag-iisipan ko na rin yun'
After years of heartbreak and mounting pressure to regain the form of old, the Lady Spikers finally brought the crown back to Taft and, in the process, delivered de Jesus his 13th championship.
“Sobrang fulfilling niya, lalo na’t seniors kami, kasi mas mahirap talaga kapag senior ka na. ‘Yung responsibilty mo, ‘yung lahat ng ginagawa mo inside and outside the court, kailangan mong pag-isipan nang mabuti kasi may mga bata kaming kasama,” Canino said.
“Kailangan naming dalhin ‘yung mga bata with the maturity that we want, that maturity that the coaches want from us.”
Canino already knew what winning a championship felt like as a rookie-MVP back in Season 85, but this latest title hit differently.
She was no longer just the young superstar taking the league by storm. This time, she shared in the big burden of putting the green-and-white back in its usual place as gold standard following painful finishes in Seasons 86 and 87.
“Sobrang fulfilling lang kasi nagawa na namin. ‘Yun talaga ‘yung goal namin na 'Batch 122,' na bago ang lahat-lahat, gusto namin talagang ibigay kay coach ‘yung gusto niyang mangyari sa La Salle, at happy kami na nagawa namin,” she added.
Taft towers still rising
Indeed, what RDJ wanted most was crystal clear: restore La Salle’s lost luster after a bronze medal then runner-up finish in the past two years.
As such, this latest championship is also Taft Ave.'s resounding rebuttal to all the noise that surrounded the program as of late.
“Ang daming sinasabi sa’min nu’ng past seasons. Kahit ano naman kasi ‘yung gawin namin, may masasabi’t-masasabi talaga ‘yung mga tao,” Provido added.
“Kami, these past preparations, mas nag-focus lang talaga kami sa sarili namin at sa bawat isa at kung ano ‘yung nagma-matter sa team.”
READ: Laput, La Salle come through after calling their shot before season start
That inward focus eventually turned into one of the most dominant campaigns in league history, as the Lady Spikers swept the eliminations to automatically advance to the finals which they also swept via convincing straight-sets victories in Games 1 and 2.
“Hindi namin pinapakinggan kung ano ‘yung sinasabi nila kasi alam naming walang imposible. Basta bilog ‘yung bola, lahat kakayanin mo,” Provido said.
“This season is a statement na walang imposible at kinaya naming ibalik ‘yung championship sa La Salle.”
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