It took 1,564 days but finally, a team has matched the record of the fabled Adamson Softball Team.
Behind the twin tower combination of Rhena Itesi and Jack Animam, the National University Lady Bulldogs overpowered the Adamson University Lady Falcons, 86-58, Wednesday morning at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
“Well, siguro, we are just lucky. With the help of our players, we could not have done everything,” declared Lady Bulldogs head coach Patrick Aquino. “Nagpapasalamat ako sa management dahil through the years, nandun yung suporta nila.”
And it was very coincidental that NU’s 73rd straight win came at the expense of Adamson.
Adamson’s Softball Team achieved 73 straight wins from from January 9, 2010 to March 2, 2016.
On the other hand, the Lady Bulldogs’ streak started on July 13, 2014 after a 62-46 win over the Lady Falcons.
“Mindset namin was to win this game lang. Let’s forget about the streak, forget about 73-0, forget about 9-0,” shared Aquino. “It’s like a championship game for us.”
Itesi and Animam towed the Lady Bulldogs to victory, with the former tallying a game-high 23 points and 14 rebounds while the latter finished with 21 rebounds and 12 points.
“Ako, personally, mindset ko is I play my best. Kami as a team, good vibes lang namin ang dinadala lang namin. Lahat kami sabay sabay na maglalaro,” said reigning Most Valuable Player Jack Animam.
But it was not just the two who provided the firepower for the Lady Bulldogs, as guards Ria Nabalan and Je-Anne Camelo scored 12 points each as well, with Camelo knocking down four triples in the third frame.
NU would lead by as much as 29 points, 80-51, with 5:53 left in the game.
Jamie Alcoy paced Adamson, who fall to 5-4 – tied for fourth with the DLSU Lady Archers, with 18 points.
Adamson’s twin tower combination of Mar Prado and Jo Razalo combined for just 10 points and nine rebounds.
NU look to make history on Saturday when they face the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigresses on Saturday, October 27, at the Filoil Flying V Centre. Adamson, on the other hand, look to bounce back when they take on the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons on the same day.
The Scores:
NU (86) – Itesi 23, Nabalan 12, Animam 12, Camelo 12, Fabruada 11, Del Carmen 5, Cac 4, Pingol 3, Goto 2, Cacho 2, Canuto 0, Bartolo 0, Ceño 0, Layug 0.
AdU (58) – Alcoy 18, Araja 11, Osano 8, Tandaan 7, Prado 6, Razalo 4, Camacho 2, Cacho 2, Aciro 0, Bilbao 0, Cabug 0.
Quarterscores: 19-14, 44-28, 72-46, 86-58