FAR Eastern University coach George Pascua is choosing to look forward rather than dwell in the past.
Pascua on FEU future
"Kahit na ganoon ang nangyari, proud pa rin ako sa mga girls at binigay naman nila yung best nila. Ayun nga lang talagang kinapos kami," he said after a 25-17, 25-17, 25-16 loss to Adamson on Tuesday.
The defeat, which was the Lady Tamaraws' seventh straight, effectively eliminated them from Final Four contention as they sit with a 1-9 record -- the first time since 2014 that the Morayta spikers won't be in the semifinals.
Not helping FEU's cause were the departures of team captain Lycha Ebon and fellow senior Martha Mora, both of whom left the team after the first round.
But rather than dwell on the losses, Pascua is sticking with who's left in the roster as he shifts his attention to building the identity of this young Lady Tamaraws crew.
"Itong tournament na ito, marami kaming learnings na natutunan. So hopefully in God’s time, makakaabangon ulit kami kasi alam naman namin na binigay nila yung for this tournmanet din," he said. "Syempre di natatapos this season yung ta-trabahuhin namin, so yung learning na yon, yun ang magbibigay sa amin ng motivation para maka-move forward ulit sa next season."
Lucky for Pascua, those who remain are ready to fill the gaps left by the departures in hopes of bringing FEU back in contention.
"Nalungkot din kami kasi naging leader namin sila, pero naging motivation din po sila sa amin na kailangan namin maipakita na kaya din namin maging leader kahit wala na sila," said Shiela Kiseo, who succeeded Ebon in leading the team.
"Gusto ko din tumulong sa team at kailangan ko din trabahuin yung binigay ni coach na responsibility sa akin, which is yun din yung kailangan naming trabahuhin pa."
Undermanned as the Lady Tamaraws are, the players vow to still give it their all as they look at these remaining games as an early buildup for the next season.
"Di kami ganoon katangkad pero alam po namin na lalaban kami," said Chenie Tagaod. "Kulang lang po siguro yung pagtatrabaho namin sa loob ng court kaya po nangyayari itong mga ito. Pero yung sabi ko din, may rason rin si Lord kung bakit nangyari sa amin ito. Mas iwo-work pa namin ito sa training namin at mas tiya-tiyagain pa, mas tatapangan pa namin sa mga susunod na laro pa namin."
One thing's certain, though: Pascua's got their back whatever happens.
"For me, yung potential ng players ko talagang ilalabas namin yan para kahit papaano yung mga best options namin for next season, ma-achieve pa namin," he said. "Then for the next four months, two thumbs up ako sa kanila. No doubts and no regrets. Kumbaga di kami nagsisisi at 100-percent kaming tiwala sa kanila."
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph