LONG before Angel Canino set foot in the UAAP seniors ranks, the La Salle captain had already earned the respect of Ateneo icon Alyssa Valdez.
Valdez, known as the ‘Phenom,’ who watched Game 1 of the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball finals along with the 15,192-strong Big Dome crowd, saw Canino play in high school and was impressed at the La Sallian's abilities at such a young age.
She knew Canino would go on to establish herself as a volleyball star. She had the skill, the temperament, the leadership and what Valdez also saw was herself in the person of the young athlete as she assessed that she had a built and body like hers which will be an asset once she enters college.
READ: The two times La Salle won the UAAP Finals from 0-1 down
"Si Angel Canino, kasi same kami ng built ng body — not too big, not too tall but very athletic and very long din," Valdez said in an interview in 2019.
"She's performing really well pero back in high school, hindi ako kasing galing ni Angel [Canino]. Ang taas na agad ng level of competition [na nilalaruan niya].”
Valdez was, of course, a legend in the UAAP. During her prime, which was actually not so long ago, most schools built their defenses to thwart her, including La Salle whose head coach Ramil de Jesus once said that Valdez was so dominant and powerful that she almost "single-handedly" lifted Ateneo to its glory days.
Now that La Salle's season is on the line, trailing 1-0 in the best-of-3 UAAP finals against National University, eyes are focused on Canino wondering if she could raise her level of play a few more notches to lift her school from the brink like Valdez used to do for Ateneo.
This is not to belittle what she has done in the last game where she led her team in scoring though it was a losing effort.
What La Salle really needs
La Salle’s junior captain posted 22 points, 13 receptions and four digs in their title series-opening loss to National U, 17-25, 21-25, 25-13, 17-25.
Moreover, 10 of those points came at a crucial juncture in the third set where La Salle won 10 straight points to complete a rare set-clinching 17-6 blitz over the defending champions.
She had help from Shevana Laput with 16 points (four blocks) and Amie Provido with 10, but there should be more contribution from other members of the team for the remainder of the series.
For starters, there should be improvement in La Salle’s playmaking as just six players appeared on the scoresheets and only half of them in double figures.
RDJ shuffled his playmaking deck with mainstay setter Julyana Tolentino and rookie Mikole Reyes who combined for 19 excellent sets on 120 attempts between the two of them.
Veteran NU setter Lams Lamina, on the other hand, tallied 22 excellent sets by herself on 11 less attempts.
And it resulted to nine Lady Bulldogs contributing to NU’s scoring front, led by Vange Alinsug’s 21 markers and Bella Belen’s 19-point, 15-dig, 10-reception triple-double.
While senior outside hitter Alleiah Malaluan produced a defensive double-double of 12 receptions and 11 digs, she was held to just seven points on a rough 21.43 percent attacking efficiency.
Sophomore middle blocker Lilay del Castillo struggled to back Provido on the net with just two attack points to her name.
As such, apart from another signature Canino performance, activating La Salle’s spikers and blockers to create a much more stable ball distribution from the setters’ end will be of the essence for Taft’s title hopes to stay standing by the end of Game 2 on Wednesday.
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