Angel Canino wore an arm sling after an unfortunate accident resulted in a cut on her right arm.
Nonetheless, the reigning MVP made the effort to be at the SM Mall of Asia Arena when De La Salle University played against University of the Philippines on Thursday.
Reduced to the role of a cheerleader on the sidelines, Canino actively showed support for her fellow Lady Spikers as they triumphed over the Fighting Maroons in four sets, 26-24, 25-19, 24-26, 27-25.
For Shevana Laput, who led La Salle with 21 points, Canino’s mere presence added motivation.
“Her being there is motivation for sure,” said the 6-foot-1 opposite spiker.
“We’re doing her justice, we’re giving her peace of mind by winning for her. We’re playing for her now because she can’t be on the court, but she’s in our hearts.”
Maicah Larroza, who was called upon off the bench, also delivered quality minutes for the Lady Spikers, achieving a triple-double of 12 points, 14 digs, and 10 excellent receptions. The third-year Larroza admitted that they braved on against UP for the injured Canino.
“Siguro nagserve yun as an inspiration sa amin. Kanina lahat kami let’s do this for Angel para wala siya masyadong isipin mamaya ganon, para mas mabilis yung pagrecover niya,” she said.
Although Laput led the Lady Spikers in scoring, she shared that filling the hole left by Canino would require a team effort. Besides the two, Alleiah Malaluan also made an impact with 17 points, while Amie Provido and Jyne Soreño contributed eight apiece.
“Of course with Angel, we’re not sure, but definitely there’s the need to step up so I guess there’s that pressure, but I’m glad that my team and the coaches have that trust in me,” said Laput.
“But it’s not just me, there’s Ate Leiah, there’s Ate Maicah, all of us. It just so happened that in this game, I had the most points.”
Larroza, who has been a spark plug off the bench in all of her three seasons so far, also pointed out that the second-stringers should take advantage of the situation that could pave the way for their grand introduction to the league. Head coach Ramil de Jesus utilized all of his 13 players against UP.
“Siguro sa team meron pa kayong hindi pa mga nakikita, so opportunity din ito para sa iba na maipakita nila yung kaya nila,” said Larroza.
“There’s more pa sa team namin, hindi ito yung best namin and yung pressure kanina, mas nafuel kami na hindi kami pwedeng magpatalo.”
