De La Salle University finally reached the podium in UAAP Season 87, capturing bronze after finishing fourth in back-to-back seasons.
However, the Green Spikers lost nearly their entire starting six in the offseason due to graduation, with Noel Kampton, Vince Maglinao, Menard Guerrero, Nat Del Pilar, and Gene Poquita all moving on.
La Salle entered Season 88 with eight rookies and faced a harsh reality check, losing its first four games — the school’s worst start in the Final Four era.
At the bottom of the standings, the Green Spikers kept fighting for their school, and their persistence finally paid off on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
La Salle broke through the win column by outlasting University of the East, 27-25, 25-23, 17-25, 25-17, improving their record to 1-4.
(C) UAAP Season 86 Media Team
“Ang nagpu-push lang sa akin ay yung pride po as a Lasallian,” said outside spiker Eugene Gloria on what kept him going through the losses.
“Hindi lang po yung apelyido sa likod, kundi po yung nakalagay dito sa harap ng jersey,” he added.
Feeling the thrill of victory after a long drought, another La Salle standout, Chris Hernandez, emphasized that this win should serve as a starting point for their climb back to contention.
Far Eastern University (5-0), National University (4-1), and University of Santo Tomas (4-1) currently lead the tournament, while chaos reigns in the middle of the pack. University of the Philippines sits fourth at 2-2, Ateneo de Manila University follows at 2-3, and La Salle trails behind.
(C) UAAP Season 86 Media Team
“Kailangan naming panghawakan itong panalong ito at ilagay namin sa puso namin. Gawin namin itong start para mailabas pa namin yung laro namin sa next games namin at kumuha pa ng maraming panalo,” said Hernandez.
Hernandez led the Green Spikers with 17 points against the Red Warriors, supported by Eugene Gloria’s 15 points. Cameroonian middle blocker Issa Ousseini also contributed 15 points, tallying nine spikes, four blocks, and two aces.
For head coach Jose Roque, the key was simply sticking together during the challenging drought.
“Talagang trabaho lang kami. Whether three-set loss or four or five, kung ano man yung dapat namin punuan, pupunuan lang namin. Still learning kung anong adjustment at the same time, encouraging the players to play better than the last,” said the third-year head coach.
“Kailangan ganoon ang attitude namin and also tiwala sa sarili, sa teammates, sa kaya nilang ibigay.”
La Salle will close the first round with games against Adamson University and defending champion National University.
#WATCH: NOT YET AT FULL STRENGTH 🏹
La Salle head coach Jose Roque acknowledges that Issa Ousseini still has more to give, as he continues to make sacrifices while observing Ramadan 🏐#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/01sZhmUSJl
📹 Justin Valencia/Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/AZ3vXNXY8C
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) March 7, 2026
