(Photo by Roy Afable)This time around, it’s the Lady Eagles’ turn in the Finals. They vanquished the Final Four contenders Adamson, FEU and UST to meet the currently undefeated and defending champions La Salle. Albeit playing with a whole lot of inspiration and confidence, they have to beat the Lady Spikers thrice to bag their first Volleyball title. With La Salle’s unblemished 14-0 record, they have earned a 1-0 advantage in the Finals.
It may be a tough mountain for the Lady Eagles with that predicament but it’s not an impossible task at hand. With that in mind, here are a number of ways to defeat their long time rivals:
Fille her up
(Photo by Roy Afable)The Lady Eagles team captain is one of the top scorers in Volleyball. Fille Cainglet has a similar game like her DLSU counterpart Cha Cruz but with more powerful attacks. They should set her up more often and rack up those points to keep them at bay. Once they have established a scoring run and a sizeable lead, they have a very good chance winning their sets. A consistent scorer, Fille is by far Ateneo’s best bet and a force to be reckoned with.
Attack variations
(Photo by Roy Afable)It’s worth noting that the addition of rookie Alyssa Valdez for Ateneo, they basically got themselves a scorer akin to that of former UST player Aiza Maizo. She’s after all the best scorer for UST back in High School. As a starter for the Lady Eagles, she has excellent attack variations that can give problems to opposing teams on the block. That’s very evident in her game most notably against La Salle a couple of weeks ago. Her quick attacks are what the Lady Spikers should watch out for.
Her style of play caught the La Salle defenders by surprise in that game. Quite simply she’s not a one-sided player. Ai Nacachi and Gretchen Ho followed suit thus taking that game to 5 sets but faltered in the end. Let’s not forget about Jam Ferrer who’s also a factor in setting up those varied attacks to her teammates.
The Bench mob
(Photo by Roy Afable)Keeping your best players fresh in the game is very important that’s why it’s always good to have reliable bench players on your team. Ella De Jesus is one those players and the X-Factor for Ateneo. She was a warrior in their game against FEU last February 5. Although veteran Ai Nacachi started in place of Gretchen Ho – she suffered a sprained left pinky at the time – It was De Jesus that got quality minutes in that game.
Not exactly is she as tall as her teammate Gretchen Ho, she played excellent Volleyball as she racked up 16 points off attacks in that game alone. She blocked, digged and scored away like there was no tomorrow. Ateneo won against FEU in 5-sets nonetheless.
Ai Nacachi is another player that needs to get some more action as well. She may not be a prolific scorer like Alyssa Valdez or Gretchen Ho; she’s another player you can count on for some added points and on defense. Going big is another key in winning a tall and athletic team like La Salle; it’s time for rookie Mae Tajima to get into the mix on the block for some added size.
Defense, defense, defense
(Photo by Roy Afable)While Ateneo’s defense isn’t really that bad but facing a top attacking team like defending champs La sale, they need to beef it up – literally. La Salle’s Big M.A.C. – Michele Gumabao, Abby Marano and Cha Cruz, 3 of their top scorers that won’t be easy to defend on the block. Floor defense is another key in winning against their rivals. Despite the 5-set loss in their last match against La Salle, it gave them many opportunities to score on defense. It’s as if they took a page from the Adamson Lady Falcons’ playbook.
Keep it to 4 at least
(Photo by Roy Afable)Taking reference in their last game against La Salle, they slugged it out in 5 long sets but succumbed to their rivals thereafter. The key for them is to establish an early scoring run and up their D. That’s what they did in that rivalry match 2 weeks ago that easily won them set 1 and 3. In set 4, Ateneo had La Salle on the ropes but somehow escaped on what could’ve been an upset win.
Notably, the Lady Eagles started losing their steam when La Salle hit the 20 point mark in the 4th set. Then and in the 5th and deciding set, La Salle took advantage thus establishing an early lead and took control all the way for the win.
During the stepladder match against UST last week, they were almost in a similar predicament but the results were different.
Ateneo won the first 2 sets but UST extended the game by winning the 3rd set. In the 4th set however, Ateneo had the lead early on but UST somehow came back fighting keeping the game close. In the end, Ateneo won it in 4 sets.
If the Lady Eagles can make a scoring run, win their sets and hold their opponent to just a single set, they have a very good chance of bagging that coveted UAAP Volleyball championship.
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