Already entering the UAAP Season 81 Women’s Volleyball tournament short-handed compared to the other squads, the National University Lady Bulldogs suffered another blow.
Multiple sources inside the NU camp have confirmed to Tiebreaker Times that senior Lady Bulldog Riza Sato will not be fielded by the Lady Bulldogs.
The reason? The Sports and Wellness Management major did not make the academic quota of NU.
The Lady Bulldogs were already reportedly set to only have 11 players on the lineup, majority of which are rookies. Missing the 5-foot-10 spiker could trim that number further.
Without Sato, the Lady Bulldogs will have to adjust even further under new head coach Norman Miguel in their first year the school’s post-Jaja Santiago era.
The 24-year-old Filipino-Japanese, who averaged 9.6 points in Season 80, will still have one more playing year with the Lady Bulldogs next season. But of course, she needs to make the school’s academic requirements first.
