When the University of Santo Tomas and the University of the Philippines looked poised to cancel each other out in a tense season opener of the UAAP Season 88 Collegiate Women’s Football Tournament, it was UST midfielder Rica Gerona who broke the deadlock and turned the spotlight her way.
The proud product of Masbate National Comprehensive High School unleashed a thunderous strike from outside the Fighting Maroons’ box, delivering the decisive moment that electrified the crowd at the Ayala Vermosa Sports Hub.
As it turns out, Gerona wasn’t improvising — she was simply following her coach Marjo Allado’s directive to show more courage on the pitch, albeit in his own colorful way.
“Yung sinabi lagi sa’kin ni Coach Marjo (Allado) na ‘Be Brave’, kahit quote yun ng FEU,” Gerona shared.
“‘Be Brave’ talaga kase, sa amin individually, kailangan namin ma-build yung confidence.
“Tuwing palaging nag ho-hold kami ng bola, palagi namin binabalik kaya kailangan namin magkaroon ng confidence, lalo na dahil gusto namin makamit yung championship,” she added.
That championship dream, however, will require going through Far Eastern University — the gold standard of UAAP women’s football.
The Lady Tamaraws have ruled the pitch for three straight seasons, building a dynasty that every contender, UST included, must find a way to topple.
Opening matches are never easy. They often test whether the long grind of preseason has truly prepared the team to start the campaign strong.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
For Gerona, what made UST’s win even more rewarding was overcoming the hurdles that came before kickoff — issues that could have easily set them back.
“Wala po kami training ng 11-a-side, and yung problem always namin is wala kaming field sa UST,” she admitted. “Meron naman pero di siya laging available, so need pa namin i-improve ung tacticals and technicals namin kase pag nag-11-a-side game kami dito, like ngayon, mahirap kami mag-adjust.
“So like sa first half, nahirapan kami mag-adjust. Pero nung second half, nakapag-adapt na yung team sa ground ng field and yung technicals na sinasabi ni coach. So we’re grateful. Para samin, kulang pa yung isang goal and, in the next games, yun ang ine-aim namin na mas marami pa kaming goals.”
Now in her third playing year, the 21-year-old midfielder knows UST remains a work in progress.
With a compressed season expected to conclude by November, the challenge is to build chemistry quickly and transform potential into consistent results.
UST may have escaped with three points off Gerona’s moment of brilliance, but the bigger task lies ahead — finding ways to score more, defend better, and forge a tighter bond both on and off the pitch.
“Andun yung relationship namin sa isa’t isa,” Gerona said.
“Pero like outside football, wino-work out namin hanggang ngayon.”
