Heading into Wednesday’s quadruple-header at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan, only one team from each division in the UAAP Season 87 Collegiate Volleyball Tournament remained unbeaten through eight games: National University in the women’s division and Far Eastern University in the men’s.
Both squads aimed to maintain their perfect records, with the Lady Bulldogs facing an upstart University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons and the Tamaraws clashing against a winless University of the East squad.
However, before FEU took the court at 3:00 PM, UP pulled off a stunning upset.
The Fighting Maroons ended NU’s unbeaten run with a hard-fought 26-24, 23-25, 17-25, 25-23, 15-12 victory, fueled by a career-best 30-point explosion from Nina Ytang.
Having witnessed the Lady Bulldogs’ first loss of the season, the Tamaraws made sure they wouldn’t suffer the same fate. They secured a 25-19, 25-17, 23-25, 25-18 win over the Red Warriors, staying unscathed in the UAAP men’s volleyball tournament.
For third-year setter Ariel Cacao, NU’s shocking loss served as a wake-up call for FEU, reminding his teammates not to be complacent despite facing a winless opponent.
While the Tamaraws did experience a lapse — dropping the third set before closing out their ninth consecutive victory — Cacao remained proud that FEU stayed undefeated ahead of a crucial showdown with defending champion NU on Sunday, March 30, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
“Yung pinanood din namin na game kanina ng [NU] women’s, parang wake-up call agad sa amin na dapat hindi kami mag-relax kasi NU against UP sa women’s, hindi natin akalain na gano’n mangyayari. Pero gano’n yung nangyari,” Cacao shared, after steering the Tamaraws’ offense with 21 excellent sets.
“Parang ganon lang din sa amin. Lagi ko rin sinasabi na huwag hintayin matalo bago ma-realize na kailangan pa namin trumabaho. Kailangan din namin yung ganitong urgency, especially sa parating na match namin against NU kasi isa sila sa pinakamalakas na team. Siguro mas kailangan namin doblehin yung effort namin para sa parating na game namin on Sunday.”
Echoing Cacao’s sentiments, FEU head coach Eddieson Orcullo emphasized the importance of hard work and consistency, using NU’s defeat in the women’s division as a lesson for the Tamaraws as they chase a rare elimination-round sweep.
The closest FEU has come to completing a perfect preliminary round was in Season 70 (2008) and Season 73 (2011), when they finished with a 13-1 record.
“Kung ano dapat yung mangyari sa game, tignan niyo yung next game namin against NU. Yung NU, ‘yon yung pinakamalakas na kalaban na namin. Ang dami pang sunod na game, pero dito na agad kami nakatanaw kay NU kasi mahirap ‘eh. Gusto ng lahat siyempre ma-sweep, pero nakita niyo naman yung labanan kanina, yung UE talagang nothing to lose, palo kung palo,” Orcullo said.
“Kung ipapasok natin sa utak natin na gusto natin ng sweep, eh trinatrabaho ‘yan, hindi sinasabi. Ngayon, kung may oras pa nga kami, baka mag-ensayo pa kami kasi kita niyo naman yung galaw kanina. Pero a win is a win. Mag-eensayo kami bukas siguro, tapos trabaho ulit.”
