Adamson University was limited to just 11 points in the first set against the University of Santo Tomas before rallying to take a four-set win, 11-25, 25-21, 25-13, 25-22, on Saturday at Philsports Arena.
The Lady Falcons recovered by going back to basics. And when they did that, they cruised to victory as leading scorer Trisha Tubu also regained her scoring form.
The opposite spiker from Adamson High, despite a disappointing first frame, still finished with 21 points on 15 attacks and six blocks.
“Tinulungan lang po namin ang isa’t isa at sinubukan naming bumalik sa aming mga pundasyon. At nang ginawa namin iyon, madali na lang po sa amin at nakabawi rin si Trisha Tubu sa pagiging top scorer,” Tubu shared about their comeback.
“Ang nawala po nung first set ay yung pasa po namin, kaya nag-reset po kami, at nag-focus sa dapat naming gawin, at naging maganda naman po ang resulta,” she added. “Nakapag-perform nang maayos yung team kapag may magandang pasa dahil ito ang unang kailangan sa volleyball.
“Kapag may magandang pasa ka, may magandang set ka, automatic may palo ka.”
Personally, though, it was the words of head coach Jerry Yee that motivated Tubu to enter the second set with fire in her eyes.
Yee’s trust in Tubu remains high as, according to the veteran tactician, the 22-year-old rookie out of Concepcion, Tarlac, is a consistent contributor.
And for Tubu, she’s just repaying Yee’s trust in her.
“Sinabi lang po sa akin ni Coach na bumalik po ako kung ano po ako, kung ano yung nilalaro ko. Huwag ako matakot magka-error, huwag matakot sa blocker. Basta gawin ko lang yung dapat kong gawin, at kung ma-block man, nandoon ang teammates ko mag-co-cover,” said Tubu.
“Sobrang saya po kasi nung preseason po talaga on and off ako, kaya ang sarap po sa feeling na pinagkatiwalaan po ako ni Coach sa First Six, na kahit magka-error man ako, hindi niya ako nilalabas,” she said regarding her coach’s trust.
Tubu also felt pleased with her performance in the second to fourth sets as the 5-foot-8 hitter became a force at the net with six blocks.
She focused on increasing her blocking rate in the second round after underperforming in that category in the first round.
“Sobrang sarap po sa feeling kasi iyon po talaga ang focus ko — yung blocking ko. During the first round po, medyo late ko na lang din nakuha kung paano yung tamang paraan ng pag-block.”
