Ateneo de Manila University still has a long road ahead in its campaign after gaining its fourth win in the UAAP Season 85 Women’s Volleyball Tournament at the expense of the University of the Philippines.
Despite the tough challenge for the Blue Eagles, Lyann De Guzman said they continued to train during the Holy Week break, and Ateneo’s hard work paid off by getting a win against UP in straight sets, 25-20, 25-17, 25-22.
To top it off, De Guzman said it was also a huge confidence booster going into their next games.
“Yun nga po siyempre, nag-prepare pa rin po kami kahit holy break na. ‘Yun nga nag-aaral pa rin po kami sa kung ano po ‘yung maging kalaban namin,” De Guzman shared.
“‘Tas naging prepared lang po kami sa training, tas ‘yung confident po namin; ‘tas ‘yun nga bini-build up po namin ‘yung character namin.”
Ateneo head coach Oliver Almadro said that they will step it up every game to challenge its players to do the impossible. The Blue Eagles have a 4-6 win-loss slate, good for the sixth spot.
Ateneo’s remaining games will be challenging as it will face strong teams, namely University of Santo Tomas, Far Eastern University, De La Salle University, and National University, in that order.
Despite the daunting task ahead, the Blue Eagles will work hard to get a spot in the Final Four.
“Every day, every game is an opportunity to step up. So no matter where we end up, our mindset and thinking will be to step up every game and every day,” the decorated head coach said.
“I think nothing is impossible, so people may say it’s impossible, but we believe in ourselves, our team, and our community. We’ll just step up, and we’ll see where it takes us.
“And as they say, it’s up to us to do the work, and God to show mercy. So, we will do what’s necessary, and maybe we will be doing the impossible, maybe… maybe,” he continued.
The 5-foot-10 open spiker from Quezon City echoed Almadro and hopes that their victory against the Fighting Maroons can carry the momentum they have in their remaining games.
“Actually, sobrang helpful ‘to since magbibigay ‘to sa amin ng boost ng confidence na wala po talagang impossible na kaya namin ‘to na bawat isang game na manalo,” echoed the former FEU-Diliman product.
