The entire team must contribute for an unlikely Final Four appearance to happen.
On Wednesday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre, The Ateneo Blue Eagles continued their second-round push in the UAAP Season 85 women’s volleyball tournament with a straight-sets victory over the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons. The vollleybelles from Loyola now have a 4-6 record, which is good enough to keep their Final Four chase alive. The impressive win was a result of a fantastic team effort, and coach Oliver Almadro believes that it wasn’t a fluke.
After the contest, the veteran tactician explained how he keeps, not just his star players, but the entire team motivated.
“I’m always challenging everybody, especially si Lyanne [De Guzman}, si Joan [Narit], si AC [Miner], si Takako [Fujimoto] also,” Almadro told reporters during the postgame presser.
“I keep on challenging them that they really have to step up. Every game is an opportunity to step up. So, don’t think na si Vanie [Gandler] at si Faith [Nisperos] lang ang magdadala. No, every game is an opportunity to step up.”
A Final Four appearance for the Blue Eagles is possible but the odds are stacked against them. Their upcoming schedule is brutal as their next opponents include the league-leading De La Salle University Lady Spikers and the defending champions National University Lady Bulldogs. Coach O understands how important it is for each player in his rotation to step up and contribute in the coming games.
“If they will think about it na it as an opportunity [na] ‘hindi ko pwedeng pakawalan ‘to,’ so, macha-challenge sila to do their task, to do their role better. In that case, makakatulong. So, ang laking bagay,” Almadro elaborated.
“We really hope and we really pray that this challenge na binibigay ko sa kanila will give us the confidence, the morale, the spirit, the energy that we need going into the next games,” he added.
Ateneo will be back in action on Saturday as they take on the explosive University of Santo Tomas Golden Tigresses.