Despite being pushed into a win-or-go-home situation in the UAAP Season 87 Men’s Volleyball Tournament Finals, National University’s Buds Buddin remains confident that the Bulldogs can complete an unprecedented ‘five-peat’ in the league’s Final Four era.
On Sunday afternoon, NU suffered a rare Finals defeat at the hands of a redemption-seeking Far Eastern University squad. The team fell in a grueling five-set thriller, 25-22, 22-25, 25-13, 22-25, 13-15, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
After sweeping their last four UAAP Finals appearances, the loss marked NU’s first Finals match defeat since dropping the Season 79 championship opener to the Ateneo Blue Eagles on May 2, 2017.
“Actually, nandun pa rin ‘yung kompiyansa kasi nakita namin na kaya namin eh. Sadyang may mga lapses lang kaming nangyari like after namin ma-dominate ‘yung set na ‘yun, nagre-relax,” said Buddin, who came off the bench and finished with 12 points.
“‘Yun lang naging factor na umangat FEU sa momentum, tuloy-tuloy sila. So, ‘yun siguro ang baguhin namin sa sarili namin na after another set dapat ganun pa rin, hindi ‘yung nagre-relax kami.”
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
A major factor in NU’s stunning loss was the 34 errors they committed — many of which came during crucial stretches, especially in the fifth and deciding set.
With FEU holding a narrow 11-10 lead in the fifth frame, NU committed three costly miscues: a service error by Jeffe Gallego, an attack error by Jan Abanilla, and an uncharacteristic service error by Buddin.
Those back-to-back errors handed the Tamaraws match point and eventually allowed them to move one step closer to their 26th UAAP men’s volleyball crown.
Despite the painful result, Buddin drew confidence from NU’s strong statistical showing. The Bulldogs outscored the Tamaraws overall (63-53) and displayed moments of dominance throughout the two-hour, 19-minute marathon.
“Para sa akin, konting disiplina pa kailangan. Nandun naman na kami, sadyang kinapos lang talaga sa dami ng errors. Siguro ‘yung sistema, ‘yung iba hindi nasunod. Siguro mas mag-compose pa kami na maglaro as a team at hindi as an individual,” the pride of Palawan admitted.
Do-or-die situations are nothing new for Buddin and the Bulldogs. Just last week, they faced a similar knockout match in the Final Four against the University of Santo Tomas Golden Spikers and emerged victorious to secure their 10th consecutive Finals appearance.
That resilience is why Buddin was quick to rally his teammates, urging them to shake off the sting of the Game 1 loss and turn their focus to the all-important Game 2 set for Wednesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
NU’s historic ‘Drive for Five’ still hangs in the balance.
“Siguro, mabigat sa pakiramdam ‘yung pagkatalo pero kailangan namin siya alisin sa isip namin kasi alam namin may chance pa rin naman kaming makabawi sa Game 2,” he added.
“Siguro mas focus pa kami at sa sarili mag-start kung paano kami mag-prepare, di lang sa dorm, di lang sa training, pati sa sarili siguro.”
