Men’s CHESS: Randy Segarra
From playing to coaching as assistant, and eventually as a head coach of the Woodpushers, Randy Segarra has come a long way.
He first wore the Green-and-White jersey in 1995 as a rough entry in the UAAP. Segarra shared that during his time, scholarships were performance-based, which pushed him to play harder for the team.
Randy Segarra bagged the gold medal in his first year, which had brought La Salle’s spot from last to fourth. In his second year, his team ranked third just before he filed for a leave of absence.
Coming back from a leave of absence, he steered the squad again for a third place finish until the Woodpushers bagged the championship in 1999, which was also his MVP year.
“Passion na rin un, ung hilig. Nandun yung dedication ko sa paglalaro talaga. Saka ung goal ko na magimprove pa,” said Segarra.
He took the women’s assistant coach post right after graduation just before assuming the position of head coach of the Woodpushers in 2006.
“Para maishare ko ung natutunan ko sa players. Work in progress pa [even in coaching],” he added.
As a La Salle graduate, he wants to team his players to be Lasallian athletes. He furthered, “Culture (and) values na natutunan ko nung nasa loob ako (DLSU team). (My)Thinking as a Lasallian student.”
In the coming season, the Head Coach Segarra has set the bar for his team. He is aiming for another strong finish after his squad’s bridesmaid place in the recently concluded UniGames.
“Hopefully top three pareho, [for] women’s masustain ang championship and sa guys, from top four to top three,” he ended.
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The UAAP Football Championship has remained elusive to the DLSU Green Booters for the past 15 years. The extended drought prompted the team’s management to bring in former Booters’ midfielder Alvin Ocampo as an assistant coach to provide the young squad with much-needed championship experience.
“The reason why I coach in La Salle is because the last championship was from my batch. That’s why Coach Hans [Smit] asked if I could help out so I’ve been with the team for three years already, and we’re trying to bring back the glory days of football in La Salle,” said the BS Marketing Management graduate.
After the team’s daily practices in the morning, Ocampo jets off to the corporate world where he works for Mizuno. Despite his duties in La Salle and career with Mizuno, he still finds time to conduct one-on-one private lessons with children, which shows his desire to improve the future of Philippine Football.
During his days in La Salle, from 1995 to 2000, Ocampo made a trio of appearances in the UAAP Finals in his first three years. As a rookie, he was a valuable addition to the defending champion team. His collegiate career was highlighted by back-to-back UAAP championships in 1996 and 1997, the last time the Green Booters held the top spot.
In his rookie season, the Green Booters failed to defend the title as the team fell against Ateneo, which held a twice-to-beat advantage in the finals after winning the first game. The following year, the Green Booters showed resilience as the team topped the eliminations just before beating Ateneo in a finals rematch.
The Green-and-White repeated the feat in 1997, winning the championship once again against Ateneo, after finishing the eliminations on top. Ocampo received the co-MVP award with teammate Christian Lozano after the Green Booters destroyed their rival, 5-1, in the final match.
This season, the Green Booters will look to relive Ocampo’s glory days. After failing to reach the finals in last year’s UAAP and finishing fourth in last October’s UniGames, the team is looking to redeem themselves this season.
“I see the team right now with all heart, and that’s a big advantage for us now especially because we don’t have the best recruits in the UAAP, but we do have players that have heart,” concluded Ocampo.
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Men’s Lawntennis: Roland Kraut
The Green Tennisters has geared up to repeat the team’s domination over the other teams when the team concluded season 74 finish as champion after its 5th place finish in season 73. Behind the team’s success in bringing home the victory is Tennisters’ Head Coach Roland Kraut.
In his college days, Kraut played for the Green-and-White for four years (1995-1998). Ronald Kraut was a rookie then when the Green Tennisters grabbed the championship trophy in season 58. The team entered the top three during his entire stay.
After graduating from DLSU with a degree in Business Management in 1998, Kraut immediately signed up to coach the Green Tennisters.
“Our coach had to leave the team in my last year, so the job was offered to me. It took me two seconds to accept the job,” recalled the Tennisters’ coach.
Coach Roland has been coaching the Green Tennisters for 14 years, implementing the Lasallian values he has earned as a student-athlete in his college days. He managed to develop his team’s skills as coach. Kraut earned his International Tennis Federation (ITF) Level 3 certificate for a job well done in coaching his young tennis players. Being the team captain during his final year in DLSU has helped him mold his athletesphysically and mentally.
The defending champion, the Green Tennisters, and bridesmaid to UST, the Lady Tennisters have been well trained by Coach Roland this season. He believes that even though Mike Basco, last year’s MVP in tennis men’s division, had graduated, his rookies can fill the gap to retain the team’s title.
Even with an improved lineup this season for NU, UST and UP, last year’s second, third and fourth, respectively, Coach Roland is certain that the Green Tennisters will bring home the gold once again.
As the second half of the UAAP nears, Kraut is satisfied with his team’s performance during trainings.
“I still believe in my team’s heart and hunger for more. With our additional rookies, and their hunger to get the title back, I believe we will go for nothing but the crown,” he ended.