The Lady Bulldogs did not have Roger Gorayeb’s fiery presence against the Lady Maroons
The National University Lady Bulldogs looked out of sorts in their four-set loss to the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons, Sunday afternoon.
While faulty reception has been the Lady Bulldogs’ prevalent problem all season long, their fiery mentor Roger Gorayeb was not at the sidelines to refocus his team when crunch time came.
Gorayeb, who was attending his son’s high school graduation on Sunday afternoon, left assistant coach and former head coach Edjet Mabbayad in charge.
Although not as brash, Mabbayad was still dumbfounded by his team’s routine mistakes.
“Masyadong naging tight ‘yung mga bata. Sila pa nanggigil kanina kaya ang dami naming errors. ‘Yung prinactice namin dun naman pa kami nadali ng error,” Mabbayad shared after the game.
While Gorayeb’s absence could have been a factor, Mabbayad clarified that his players should not use that as an excuse since they knew the stakes of the match.
“Meron din [effect ‘yung wala si coach Roger] pero, at the same time, dapat ‘di reason sa mga player ‘yun na wala si coach,” added Mabbayad.
“Ganoon talaga, may nananalo, may natatalo. Kailangan lang talaga mag-improve kami sa pagkatalo, and ‘di naman kailangan ma-low morale, kailangan lang i-motivate sila para sa upcoming games.”
At 7-5, NU’s campaign is coming down to their last two matches against the Far Eastern University and University of Santo Tomas. Now more than ever, the Lady Bulldogs need to buckle down and find a way to survive the final stretch of the season.
