THERE won’t be a better chance than now for the University of Sto. Tomas to restore lost championship glory in UAAP women’s volleyball — one that has now been 14 years in the making for the 16-time champions.
It was a star-studded UST squad back in 2010 led by then-Finals MVP Rhea Dimaculangan and current deputy coach Shaq delos Santos which last brought the crown back to España. Since then, the Tigresses reached the semis five times and the Finals twice more but bowed down to La Salle (Season 73) and Ateneo (Season 81) respectively.
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Redemption, as long as they continue to wait for it, is again a step closer as team captain Detdet Pepito believes now’s the best shot they’ve got to bring championship gold back home.
With six rookies and seven sophomores, such a young group of ‘undersized’ yet hardworking Tigresses than in recent years is what Pepito believes has and will still be the cutting edge for UST the rest of the way.
“‘Yung (composition) ng team na ‘to, kakaiba eh — puro bata. Kung titignan natin, parang medyo less experienced pa pero dito talaga makikita na nagbubunga talaga ‘yung mga pinaghirapan namin sa team.
“And yes, masasabi ko po na this is the best chance na talagang mabalik ang crown,” said Pepito.
But even in a position where the Tigresses are now just three wins away from championship number 17, the third-year libero-captain beamed with pride on how far the team has come but added a sense of cautious optimism on what could still be in the next few weeks.
“Siyempre proud kasi as a young team, talagang hindi namin in-expect na mapupunta kami sa ganitong sitwasyon. Since nandito na nga, sinasabi ko sa kanila na i-embrace na natin, ipanalo na natin, i-enjoy na natin at i-cherish natin yung every moment na magkasama tayo sa court. Happy lang,” Pepito said.
“‘Di rin talaga pwedeng magcelebrate nang todo-todo. Back to trabaho talaga kami and another challenge na naman ‘to na kailangan naming i-embrace. Masaya rin kasi malaking experience talaga ‘to at malaking tulong sa ganitong team na rebuilding at young team pa,” she added.
One team, one goal, one last push
Only a few more hurdles stand in the way of a first-ever UAAP seniors crown for the Tigresses' head coach of nine years in Kungfu Reyes.
For the longtime UST mentor, it remains of utmost importance to keep every single member of the team on the same page with the same goal in sight. From bottom to top when it comes to the people behind the school's volleyball program, Reyes made it clear that it will take everyone to bring the gold back to UST.
"Ang puhunan talaga namin dito is 'yung hard work ng lahat — from coaching staff, S and C (strength and conditioning coaches), PTs (physical therapists), down the line hanggang sa players and even the IPEA (Institute of Physical Education and Athletics) Department, nagtutulong-tulong kami hanggang sa pinaka-mataas, hanggang sa security guard na nagbabantay sa'min during practices, 'yung mga utility namin.
"So lahat, malaking sakripisyo din ang ginagawa nila kasi nga habang nag-eensayo kami, binabantayan nila kami all the way. Monitoring ng opisina, talagang hindi tumitigil pati 'yung mga doctors namin sa UST, so maraming tao behind sa team at malaking motivation sila sa'min especially sa pagpasok namin sa Final Four," Reyes shared.
Reyes also gave due credit to whom he considers as the 'backbone' of the Tigresses: the UST community and its unwavering support in every single match day.
"One goal lang ang gusto namin so we are on the same page from top to bottom. With that, hindi na kami mahihirapan to maximize kung anong meron kami especially 'yung mga resources namin outside sa team at saka especially 'yung UST community, 'yun talaga 'yung backbone namin.
"'Yung hard work at 'yung health conditions ng players namin, as long as we are healthy, 100 percent mag-peperform at mag-peperform kami at any cost. 'Yun naman talaga ang pinag-tatrabahuhan namin," said Reyes.
"No expectations pero nandito na kami. Isasagad na namin kasi' yung big picture na 'yung tinitignan namin sa ngayon."
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