TEAM PHILIPPINES—composed of the Ateneo Blue and Lady Eagles— claimed victory in both games against the Singapore teams in the 18th ASEAN University Games volleyball tournament on Thursday, July 14, 2016 at the National University of Singapore Multipurpose Hall 5 in Singapore.
Up first was the women’s team, which was still searching for its first win in this tournament. They dominated Singapore in straight sets, defeating them by the scores of 26-24, 25-13, and 25-23.
The match had no bearing on the seeding of the two teams, as they were bound to face each other for the bronze medal on the final day regardless of the result in this match. In what was a tune-up game, the score looked closer than it should have been, as aside from a neck and neck first set and late rally from Singapore, the Philippines dominated the entire match.
Queen Eagle Alyssa Valdez and veteran mainstay Michelle Morente led the Philippines in the second set rout. It was a performance familiar of that which everyone has seen time and time again these past five years from Valdez, who is now down to her last game with the Lady Eagles this coming Saturday. From the outside or right down the middle, she was able to score from any possible angle. Morente proved her worth during the game, showing her power by pounding attacks right through the Singapore defense. The graduated Lady Eagle recorded spike after spike from excellent sets by Julia Morado.
Morente noted that the secret to winning in their rematch with Singapore on Saturday is to remain upbeat and positive.
“Yun nga sinabi ni Coach Tai is to play happy, kung ano yung ginawa natin sa game kanina,” said Morente. “Hopefully madala yan sa next game.”
The team currently holds a 1-2 recording in the 18th ASEAN University Games Women’s Volleyball tournament, while the opponent stands at 0-3.
The Philippine men’s volleyball team backed up the women’s team with a win of their own, taking the match in 4 sets by the scores of 22-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25-22.
Just like their female counterparts, the men’s team started off slow, failing to take the first set from their opponents. The Philippine team led the set until after the second technical timeout in which their defenses were surpassed by Singapore’s attacks.
At the start of the second set, though, the team finally took control. Backed by a vintage performance from the Ateneo star Marck Espejo, the Philippines moved into the driver’s seat and never looked. His usual MVP-self, did all the things that are expected from players of his caliber. He dove to stop loose balls, blocking to prevent easy spikes, and smashing the ball down from every angle for his squad.
Rex Intal came up big with multiple running spikes to back up his teammate’s performance. To help the Philippines’ cause, Singapore gave away an abundance of free points through unforced service errors.
Despite the Philippines’ crucial win, coach Oliver Almadro felt that they could have done a better job in this game.
“I always want them to start strong, but sometimes, due to the number or Filipino supporters, they wanted to be as light as possible,” said the emotional coach. “But sometimes we have to be fierce from the very beginning.”
The team will face Indonesia on Friday, July 15, 2016 at 4:30pm at the National University of Singapore Multipurpose Hall 5. The two teams will enter into a tiebreaker match, as both stand at 2-1 in the tournament.
