Coming into their big match against F2 Logistics, Foton open hitter Laure admitted that she felt nervous. It was, after all, her 19th birthday.
“Noong first set po talaga may kaba pa kasi birthday ko nga tapos ramdam mo na may mga nakatingin sa’yo,” the UST Tigress admitted.
Laure muffed several hits in the first set, leading to her being benched for the next three. She watched as Foton boxed F2 into the ropes, putting them on the verge of sweeping the second round and handing the Cargo Movers their first loss of the season.
Foton nearly saw their momentum stopped when star hitter Cherry Rondina landed on Jaja Santiago in the fourth set and sprained her right ankle.
Luckily, Laure was up to the task. The PSL rookie fired five of her six points in the crucial frame and powered Foton’s finishing push.
“Nagkatinginan lang kami sa mata, alam niya na ‘yung kailangan niyang gawin and I’m happy na makita yung pag-step niya noong kailangan talaga namin siya,” said Foton head coach Vilet Ponce-De Leon.
“Sinasabi ko na talaga sa sarili ko na kailangan ko magstep-up before pa ako ipasok,” Laure said.
“Tuwing binibigay sa akin ‘yung paddle nabubuhayan ako ng loob. Masaya ako kasi nagawa ko ‘to for Cherry kasi maganda ‘yung nilalaro niya.”
For her part, Rondina was proud of her UST teammate.
“Sobrang happy ko for EJ kasi ang ganda talaga ng nilaro niya. Nakita ko na may confidence siya kanina na alam kong madadala niya into our next matches,” Rondina gushed.
Laure said that participating in her first club league taught her to be mentally tough.
“Natutunan ko na kailangan ko talaga maging brave,” she concluded.
“Dito kasi maraming mas magaling sa’yo and kailangan mo talagang maglaro ng 100% palagi.”
