With a handful of graduating players from both divisions, the DLSU Woodpushers ended their respective seasons on a high note. The Lady Woodpushers were crowned champions once again after concluding at second place last year. Meanwhile, their male counterparts redeemed themselves and won second place after falling short against the NU Bulldogs.
“Overall, we are generally happy with the teams’ performances because it was a large improvement over last year. Although we weren’t able to win the championship, we are still satisfied with the results,” says Green Woodpushers team captain Christian Nanola after playing his final year of eligibility. Nanola remains thankful for the results and his teammates as they avenged a disappointing Season 79.
Rounds 1-7
The Green Woodpushers started the first two weekends with wins over UST, ADMU, and AdU despite drawing against the UP Fighting Maroons in their second match. The fifth tie featured a battle between DLSU and league contender NU, wherein the Lasallians were able to tie the Bulldogs at two apiece. However, their succeeding match gave them their first loss at the hands of the FEU Tamaraws, 1.5-2.5, but they ended the last round against UE with a victory.
On the other hand, the Lady Woodpushers succeeded over the Lady Bulldogs in their opening match with a 3-1 win. Fortunately, Coach Randy Seggara’s women’s division avoided a loss against a gritty FEU squad with a tie unlike the Men’s team. The next three ties displayed determination from La Salle as they outplayed ADMU, UE, and UST in 4.0-0.0, 3.5-0.5, 3.5-0.5, respectively. Unfortunately, the Lasallians experienced their first defeat against the UP Fighting Maroons but recovered with a 4.0-0.0 win over AdU.
Rounds 8-14
In the second round, the Green Woodpushers declined in their performance and garnered only a couple of wins to go along with four draws and a loss against NU, which was eventually crowned champions. La Salle drew their matches against UST, UE, AdU, and FEU. However, a revenge-win over UP and a dominating finish against their archrivals, ADMU, were definitely a momentum rush for La Salle.
Still, NU came out victorious with a huge lead over the Green-and-White. DLSU ended with 33.5 points, only a point higher than third-place FEU. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs were the clear champions with a total 41.5 points. “Most of my time here in De La Salle University, I have faced a lot of trials and tribulations. However, I believe that I left a legacy of never giving up. I believe that I also imparted this trait to my teammates,” Nanola says when asked how he left a mark for the Green-and-White.
As for the Lady Woodpushers, the team was streaking in the second round but was halted by FEU. The Morayta-based squad gave the Lasallians their only loss in the season when they were pitted against each other in the last day of the tournament. In the end, a margin of only 2.5 points was the difference between FEU and La Salle. Bronze-finisher UP was way behind, accumulating only a total of 34.5 points.
