PANSIT has always symbolized long life in Filipino culture, but in UAAP Season 88, it also became a symbol of the playoff hopes of a couple of contenders.
Of course, it all started on social media, with fans commenting that Far Eastern University had to 'papansit' for National U after the Lady Bulldogs beat University of Santo Tomas to end the eliminations, in turn, letting the Lady Tamaraws stay alive for a knockout bout against the Golden Tigresses.
Not long after, the joke turned serious, with FEU coach Tina Salak having a pair of pansit bilao delivered to NU, along with a note of thanks.
READ: FEU sends NU pansit for help in keeping Lady Tams alive
Still, when UST captain Detdet Pepito first saw the moment shared on social media, she didn’t even think it was real.
“Totoo ba yun? Akala ko AI,” Pepito told SPIN.ph, now free to smile after the black-and-gold trumped the green-and-gold for the fourth and final playoff berth.
"Pero natawa na lang ako."
What could have stayed as just another viral moment found its way to the Golden Tigresses' practices, however. Not as distraction, but as additional fuel to a fiery rivalry built on history.
“Sinabi ko nga kay Jonna [Perdido] na parang ang saya naman kasi ilang beses talaga kami pinaghaharap ng tadhana,” Pepito shared. “Talagang match na match kasi kami din ng FEU.”
The 'papansit' only intensified what they already felt. Another showdown with the Lady Tams was coming, and this time, there was something extra for both sides.
“So nung nakita namin yun, alam namin gusto nila kaming bawian. Gusto nila talaga yun, siyempre,” she said.
“Ako personally, siyempre meron (motivation). Kasi FEU yan eh."
Gold for black-and-gold?
Still, UST didn't look away from the bigger picture.
Fun content is all good, but there was business to be done.
“Yung pinaghuhugutan pa rin talaga namin, yung last year,” Pepito said, referring to a season ago when they may have wound up third, but they went winless against fourth-place FEU.
“'Di kami nakakuha ng panalo, so gano'n kami kagigil ngayong season sa kanila.”
Indeed, that 'gigil' was very much evident this season, with the Golden Tigresses going 3-0 against the Lady Tamaraws.
And in the end, what woke up on social media was put to bed by UST on the taraflex.
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