Speaking of volleyball, I was surfing the boob tube on a boring sunday afternoon. After a few clicks on the TV (my remote is busted), the UAAP Women's Volleyball Championship between FEU (Far Eastern University) Lady Tamaraws and DLSU (De La Salle University) Lady Archers was on. It was aired on Studio 23. Game 3 was in progress and it's already the 2nd set. The series was tied at one-a-piece. Winner take all match for both teams. La Salle was one set ahead while defending champions FEU were trying to equalize the game. I got curious of the game since I'm a fan of La Salle (even though I never studied there). Glad I didn't change the channel. Turned out to be a good idea after all.
Height is Might.
Looking at both teams rosters, FEU's lineup are huge as opposed to the DLSU's. Their tallest player I believe is Rachel Ann Daquis (who's one hot babe in my book) must be 6'2"- 6'3" in height and their shortest could be around 5'9"- 5'10". The rest look to be almost 6-footers. The Lady Spikers, from my observation, have the shortest lineup. Most of the players look like they're 5'6"- 5'8" in height. It's a complete mismatch. Seemed like a David versus Goliath kind of thing but La Salle's heart was bigger and that made the difference.
It's all or nothing.
The Lady Tamaraws were able to take 2nd set, winning the 3rd set was crucial for both teams. It went back and forth the entire set but La Salle took set number 3. I wasn't taking down notes, most especially the scores, as I'm not really keen on the scoring system but I'm sure which team won for each set. I apologize for not being detailed on this. Moving on, the pressure was now on the FEU. The Lady Tams needed the 4th and final set to force a 5th set. The Lady Archers were already smelling blood and ready to seal the deal. FEU needed another equalizer to stay in contention. It was the turning point of the game. Quite frankly, it kept me glued to the TV screen even more.
The heart of the defending champs were put to the test. It was all about which team wanted the title more. The game of their lives perhaps. The UAAP championship was on the line.
One for the road.
All eyes on the vets. It was time for the Lady Tams' ace player, Rachel Ann Daquis to step up and put her team on her shoulders once more. She carried her team for 5 years and it would be fitting for her to leave the game as champion. DLSU's Manilla Santos however, have the same thing in mind. The Lady Archers' captain helped her team bounce back from a disappointing title run, not making the final four last season. Both Santos and Daquis were playing their final game and are graduating this March.
Fight 'til the end.
The 4th and final set was intense. FEU kept the game very close. They tied up the score twice, I believe. The crowd was really into it obviously. I noticed throughout the game that it was hardly as fast-paced and unpredictable as I expected it to be. Whatever it is, it seemed like they were very hesitant of their attacks since the 2nd set. That's just my observation. Maybe it wasn't too fast for me perhaps. Somehow this particular set had a few hard-hitting plays especially from FEU's Daquis who had a lot of powerful spikes.
Despite the height difference, La Salle's defense controlled the game literally keeping FEU at the backseat. They've made a lot of good blocks off of FEU's strong attacks but the Lady Tams didn't give up. The score was getting close until both teams reached the 20-point mark (if I recall correctly). The Lady Archers called for timeout to regroup as they didn't want to let the Lady Tams 1-up them. Everybody was on the edge of their seats and so was I. It was bananas. Kinda like watching a basketball game, if you ask me.
With everything hanging in the balance, the defending champs were looking to take advantage of the situation and take the lead. After the La Salle timeout, the crowd was getting even louder. A lot of intensity in the Lady Tams' eyes. The REAL game was about to begin. FEU's serve, ball going straight to DLSU's side. Took a while to score. I'm finally seeing more attacks and some spike/attack fakes, whatever they call it. The pace was getting faster until La Salle takes the lead.
La Salle's serve, same back and forth plays, FEU scores. Tied up at 21 all. Another FEU serve, similar plays but an unforced error caused them the chance of taking the lead once more. Lady Archers' score is now 22. Lady Tams make a substitution. Rachel Daquis takes a seat. There was a lot of disappointment in her face yet was still have a lot of faith in her team. From the bench, she was looking on. Keeping her fingers crossed, literally, hoping for a miracle to happen although she knew it was gonna be over soon. The inevitable was already sinking in.
A couple of DLSU serves later, the score was already 24-21. The championship was within reach for the Lady Archers. DLSU serves, more quick plays, FEU attacks, La Salle defense on the block. FEU thought the ball went in off the attack but it didn't. The umpire awards the score to La Salle, it's all over! Lady Archers win season 71 of the UAAP and are back on top of the mountain. DLSU's Manilla Santos takes the MVP hardware. The team celebrates.
******
Congratulations to the DLSU Lady Archers for winning the championship. Watching championship matches of any team sport Live on TV is always fun and exciting. It was my first (and last) time to see the oh-so-pretty Rachel Ann Daquis of FEU in action. I'm gonna miss her. I wanna congratulate the FEU Lady Tamaraws as well. It was a hard fought battle. They sure gave La Salle a run for their money. It was a good run for them. A valiant effort at that. Hats off to both teams for putting up a great match. I wouldn't be surprised to see Rachel Daquis or Manilla Santos do some color commentary on UAAP volleyball games in the future. Heck, I'm looking forward to that.
After watching the game, I instantly became a fan of volleyball. Next season, UAAP Women's Volleyball will be on my radar. Gotta give some love to the women of sports once in a while. I'm hoping to watch all the games and maybe then, I'll be doing detailed notes on them. Again, I apologize for lacking a few details (i.e. scores and other stats) as I watched the game by accident and I decided to write this article at the last minute. Thus, relying mostly on all the stuff by memory. I'll do my best next time. If y'all have any corrections regarding my game information and the like, feel free to inform me.
If I'm gonna do some posts about volleyball (one of these days perhaps), an education on the sport is a must for me. I need to learn the terms and all the important stuff. Well, another sport to add on my watch list, of sorts. I'm hoping I could write about sports that I like on my blog as much as I can. I'm not worried about doing stuff about sports. Keeping up with the news for each sport is the difficult part.
All I can say is, my love for sports is the only thing that keeps the fire burning. I'll just leave it at that, for now. Might as well take things one step at a time.
No comments:
Post a Comment