Wing spiker Kyla Cordora makes up for lost time with the UST Golden Tigresses as they enter the final stretch of games in elimination round.
Kyla Cordora made sure to make her contributions count as she started in lieu of Beth Hilongo in UST’s crucial second round matchup against the UE Lady Warriors where they moved one win away from a spot in the Final Four in UAAP Season 87 on Saturday.
Cordora, who missed out on significant time due to injury, stepped up to the plate with an all-round game of eight points, seven excellent digs, and six excellent receptions to backstop the steady efforts of Angge Poyos and Reg Jurado.
[READ: UAAP: UST moves towards cusp of Final Four with sweep vs UE]
With health becoming an issue for most players this late in the season, Cordora was a welcomed sight for head coach Kungfu Reyes.
Cordora, meanwhile, relished the trust that was given to her which in turn, helped her trust in herself.
“Nagpapasalamat ako sa binigay na tiwala ng teammates at ng coaches ko. 'Yung need ko rin pagkatiwalaan ay 'yung sarili ko na kaya ko rin maglaro today,” she said.
As the Golden Tigresses continued to chase not only for the semis spot but also for a twice-to-beat advantage, each game becomes more crucial than the one before.
With UST’s bench slowly but surely picking up the pace, Cordora said that it was the perfect time to get things going for herself and completely shake off the rust after recovering from her injury.
“Siguro magandang exposure 'yung nabigay sa akin ng coaches ngayong game since nung first round, hindi ako masyadong nakapaglaro dahil sa injury. Ito na rin yung magandang time na i-gain ko rin yung trust ng coaches at mabigay ko rin yung personal best ko.” she said.
Apart from Cordora, other players like Ashlee Knop and Em Banagua were also able to make efficient use of their time on the court.
For Reyes, it was a good time to show that the Golden Tigresses weren’t just made up of one or two stars, rather, as they hope to better their outing after a finals appearance last year, the Golden Tigresses have much more to offer.
“Syempre itong additional faces namin, [ang output nito] is para makakuha ng confidence naman na at least maramdaman nila na kaya ko din umi-score, kaya ko din ilaro talaga, just a matter of time na binibigay sa kanila, na ma-maximize nila,” said Reyes.
“Hopefully 'yung rotation na 'yun, talaga namang everyday halos 'yun 'yung ginagawa na namin. So nagkaroon ng time or opportunity na ilaro nila 'yung kung anong pinagpa-practice nila for the past few weeks. And [sana] pwede pa silang umangat sa performance nila para sa upcoming games namin,” he added.
The Golden Tigresses will have a lot of time to recover though, as the league will be entering a Holy Week break.
UST sees action when the games resume on Wednesday, April 23. They face a dangerous UP Fighting Maroons for their penultimate game of the elimination round before they wrap up the second round with a finals rematch against NU that weekend.