The Ateneo Blue Eagles have lost a total of three key players due to injury, but team captain Lyann De Guzman knows that their fighting spirit remains intact.
As talented as their roster is, the injury bug has bitten the Ateneo Blue Eagles hard early into the UAAP Season 87 Women’s Volleyball Tournament.
After the freak injuries to Jlo Delos Santos and Geezel Tsunashima, the Eagles are likely to lose another key player in Sobe Buena, who suffered a right anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL) tear in their loss to the UST Golden Tigresses last March 9.
Amid this string of bad luck, team captain Lyann De Guzman hopes for her team to continue giving it their all in the face of adversity.
“‘Yun nga sabi nga namin wala, nangyari lang talaga, accident lang talaga and laban lang talaga this season,” De Guzman said following Ateneo’s 15-25, 14-25, 25-20, 19-25 loss to the DLSU Lady Spikers last Wednesday.
“Kasi kung lalabanan na namin this season, wala namang mawawala sa amin, na parang i-give na lang namin lahat para no regrets sa ngayong season na ito.”
Ateneo entered UAAP Season 87 with an intact roster, only losing Roma Mae Doromal to graduation during Season 86. Along with the holdovers were recruits such as Jihan Chautico, Robie Silla, Alexia Montoro, and Fiona Arroyo, which had the makings of a competitive core under second-year coach Sergio Veloso.
De Guzman herself has openly acknowledged her team’s potential to be competitive this season, which only adds to the pain of losing Tsunashima, Delos Santos, and Buena to their injuries.
“Mahirap [to rally the team], kasi kung tutuusin sobrang nakikita ko itong season na ito na grabe! As in ‘yung team namin very solid, but ‘yun nga nangyari ‘yung nangyari,” the fourth-year spiker lamented.
However, De Guzman has also seen their young core’s fighting spirit, which acts as a ray of hope amid a rough start to Season 87.
“Sabi naman namin ni Taks [Fujimoto] na sige lang, kasi ‘yung mga bata din naman namin, alam namin ‘yung palaban sila na hindi sila basta-basta mag-give up, and nakikita ko naman ‘yun ngayon na grabe ‘yung improvement nila. Nakikita ko na kaya nilang mag-step up kahit wala kami.”
Ateneo’s performance against DLSU alone is an example of the Eagles’ grit, De Guzman said, given how they gave the Lady Spikers a scare in Sets 3 and 4 despite a slow start to the rivalry game.
“Very happy ako sa mga pinasok ni coach ngayon kasi pinakita nila kung ano ‘yung kaya nilang gawin sa loob ng court, and nakita ko naman na nag-step up ang everyone,” De Guzman said. “Kasi ‘yun nga, sabi samin ngayon na parang laban lang, and hinihingi lang samin ni coach na ipakita namin ‘yun 110 percent namin every game. Kasi if ipapakita namin ‘yan, susunod na lang ‘yung panalo.”
‘It’s a little similar’
Like his captain, Veloso knows that Ateneo still has one big fight to show as UAAP Season 87 nears its second round of eliminations. In his view, their current situation isn’t too far from how they started Season 86 last year.
Ateneo started last season with two wins and five losses, before showing growth in Round 2 to finish with a respectable 5-9 record in Veloso’s first year.
“It’s a little similar to last season, where our first round wasn’t so good but after that, our team’s performance went up. It’s the same, because [against DLSU] I played with about three or four beginners who are in their first season. And I understand that it’s a little more emotional and the pressure is much bigger,” Veloso reflected in a separate interview.
Veloso also praised his team’s fight against the Lady Spikers, noting how they made the Taft-based squad work for their points despite the loss.
“When you think about it, it’s not easy, and our team pushed La Salle and they needed to play hard. We can neutralize their players, and we can play very well with [Angel Canino], she’s so strong and our services worked very well,” the Brazilian mentor said.
But even with his optimism, the second-year coach still lamented how injuries have decimated their depth chart for Season 87. After all, their injured trio have proven to be solid options that could have provided added firepower along with De Guzman and converted spiker AC Miner.
However, Veloso also knows that health is the utmost priority, and would rather have his wards ready for next season as compared to risking their health for a Final Four push in Season 87.
“When you stay one month without practice, you need a little more time when you return, and I don’t want to push the player. She can return, she can play, but if she gets any [more damage] you can say that it’s a lot of damage,” he said.
Images courtesy of the UAAP Media Bureau.