The DLSU Lady Spikers will suit up once again as they bid for a third consecutive title in the UAAP Women’s Volleyball Tournament. Coach Ramil De Jesus and his squad outplayed AdMU in the past two years and was glorious enough to be crowned as back-to-back champions.
For La Salle, however, reigning best setter and best server Kim Fajardo has now exhausted her years of eligibility. De Jesus will now have to rely on the leadership of last year’s Most Valuable Player, Majoy Baron, and the pair of Kianna Dy and Desiree Cheng, who each earned a Finals MVP award in their championship encounters against AdMU.
Dawn Macandili is also set to defend the crown along with Michelle Cobb. The star libero will be utilizing her last playing year, whereas Cobb will be tasked to handle the duties of the graduated Fajardo.
Intense pressure and high expectations will surely be placed on the Lady Spikers, who are coming in as contenders. “Well siguro more on floor defense and yung self-confidence. Everytime kailangan motivated sila,” De Jesus says as he emphasizes motivation and self-confidence as the team enters a new chapter.
Off-season preparations
“Tinitry ko lang i–correct yung mga kailangan pa i–correct para yung laro ko is more fine-tuned and try to stick to the regimen by coach. Also, to stay focused in training and gel more with the team with our placing,” claims Tin Tiamzon in terms of what she worked on during the break.
La Salle also participated in the University Games (UniGames) held last October 21-29, 2017 in Dumaguete City. The Lady Spikers fell short against the UST Golden Tigresses in five sets but improved to second place compared to their third place finish in 2016.
“Well, Tintin last year was one of the reasons kung bakit yung Game 2 naging madali para sa La Salle so she played well last year so I think ngayon mas confident siya. Mas magiging maganda yung laro niya this year,” De Jesus says when asked who will shine in the upcoming season.
Changes in the team
With Fajardo gone, a new dynamic has been set by Coach De Jesus for the team this Season 80. Training twice daily as the season draws nearer becomes more intensified and involved many crucial changes. This year’s players will need to not only bring in a lot of depth to an already experienced La Salle squad, but also confidence to one’s self that will help bolster the team for its upcoming games.
“We have Michelle who is as equally capable of doing the job,” Tiamzon remarks on the loss of last season’s Best Setter and Best Server. Cobb, who will be playing her second year in the UAAP, has learned a lot as a volleyball player in just over a year’s time with the Lady Spikers. Having to fill the shoes that Fajardo left will be a tough job for her, though, seeing that she will now be the official setter of the Green and White.
In addition, De Jesus states that this edition of the Lady Spikers will most likely have a weaker blocking unit compared to the previous seasons due to Cobb being a smaller setter compared to last year’s captain, “So far yung first three rotations natin nawala yung big setter natin, ngayon maliit si Michelle Cobb–small setter, so very difficult for us na yung first line of defense namin is lacking. So medyo weak ngayon yun compared to last year’s.”
De Jesus primarily focused on the team’s floor defense because of the new dynamics the team now has, as well as to make sure that his players would have the self-confidence they need to play their best in the court.
The road to three-peat
Tiamzon comments that since their training and conditioning sessions have not failed them so far, there really is no reason for a change. Nonetheless, De Jesus reminded them to work together in covering each other’s weaknesses in the court by working as a whole. At the same time, Tiamzon does not really know the other teams’ game plans, so she says to keep an open mind on whatever might happen in the upcoming season.
Nevertheless, Tiamzon added that NU will most likely be the team to beat due to the presence of Jaja Santiago of the Lady Bulldogs, who will be playing her last year in the UAAP.
As for De Jesus, his priority will be making sure that the Lady Spikers make it to the Final Four before anything else. For him, the team will only start focusing on keeping the crown in Taft when the opportunity presents itself, “Syempre, focus yung mag-qualify kami sa Top Four, so yun naman yung first. Then siguro then kung andun na yung chance why not mag finals?”
Moreover, regardless of the strong line of opponents that La Salle will have to face in Season 80, De Jesus emphasizes FEU, NU, UST, and UP as the teams to beat.
The Lady Spikers open their season tomorrow, February 3, at 4 pm at the Mall of Asia Arena.
