Veteran athletes Camilla Lamina of the NU Lady Bulldogs and Dryx Saavedra of the FEU Tamaraws take center stage as UAAP Season 87 volleyball kicks into full gear.
Old reliables are emerging as the top performers as UAAP Season 87 got went into full swing, with the NU Lady Bulldogs and the FEU Tamaraws nabbing the top spots in the women’s and men’s tournaments, respectively.
NU playmaker Lams Lamina and reigning Best Opposite Spiker Dryx Saavedra rose atop of their contemporaries to be named the Collegiate Press Corps’ UAAP Players of the Week for the period of February 15 to 23.
Both players were instrumental as their teams booked 3-0 starts to UAAP Season 87.
Lamina, for her part, showed veteran leadership as she capped off her three-game performance with 23 excellent sets on Sunday, manufacturing NU’s come-from-behind win against the FEU Lady Tamaraws in five sets to keep themselves spotless.
[READ:
NU survives tough test against FEU to go 3-0 in UAAP Season 87 women's volley]
Before that, Lamina powered a tremendous start with 20 excellent sets in their sweep of rivals La Salle in NU’s opening game. She also had 14 excellent sets in a 3-0 beatdown of the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
NU thus began its title defense on a three-game win streak.
Lamina, who edged out teammates Bella Belena and Alyssa Solomon for the plum, credited head coach Sherwin Meneses for helping her manufacture NU’s booming offense.
"Sobrang laki ng impact din ni Coach Sherwin [Meneses] kasi nabibigyan kami ng confidence every training and every game," she said.
Among other nominees were Adamson super rookie Shaina Nitura, UP stalwart Joan Monares, and UST dynamo Angge Poyos.
Over on the men’s side, Saavedra powered FEU’s undefeated bid which was punctuated by a stunning sweep of defending champions NU last Sunday.
Against the five-peat seeking Bulldogs, Saavedra unleashed 20 points built off 17 attacks and three blocks to mark the Tams’ first win over NU since 2019.
[RELATED: Non-stop work pays off for the FEU Tamaraws with streak-busting win over 5-peat seeking NU]
He also had 13 points each in wins over UST and UP to nab the weekly citation, as decided by print and online scribes covering the beat.
Saavedra beat out Ateneo’s Ken Batas, NU’s Leo Ordiales, and DLSU’s Noel Kampton for the plum.
After a sorry exit last year for FEU, Saavedra is happy to see their hard work pay off.
“Sobrang saya kasi ilang araw din kaming walang pahinga. Magaan na pahinga bukas and then after ng bukas, banat ulit kaya sana tuloy-tuloy ‘yung motivation ng lahat na walang mag-relax," he said.