De La Salle tries to immediately get back on the winning track against dangerous National University Wednesday in the UAAP Season 81 women’s volleyball tournament at the Filoil Flying V Centre.
For Lady Spikers mentor Ramil de Jesus, it now boils down to mental toughness, especially in the service area.
“Sabi ko naman sa kanila, ‘Hindi kalaban ninyo ang magpapanalo sa inyo, kayo ang magpapanalo sa sarili niyo’,” said De Jesus after De La Salle lost to University of the Philippines for the second time this season last Sunday.
"Unang-una siyempre, ‘yung serve. Kung mawawalan ka ng tiwala sa serve, ano pa ‘yung kaya mong gawin? Dahil sarili mo na iyan. Ikaw na iyan wala ka namang kalaban sa service line,” he added. “So malaking factor ‘yun para sa team na ganoon ang naging performance, lalo na sa service namin.”
The Lady Maroons capitalized on the Lady Spikers’ 37 errors in last Sunday’s 25-16, 26-24, 25-19 win, sending the defending champions to their third loss in eight games.
Now locked in a in a four-way tie with UP, University of Santo Tomas and Far Eastern University at 5-3, De La Salle needs to address its problems right away in the 4 p.m. match.
The Lady Spikers are expected to be tested anew by the Lady Bulldogs, who despite toiling at the lower half of the standings at 2-6 have shown a lot of promise with their youth movement.NU gave De La Salle fits in a 10-25, 25-20, 25-27, 22-25 first-round loss, as De Jesus expects his troops to work hard and show true character in this bounce-back game.
The Tigresses are also seeking to rediscover their winning ways against last-placed Adamson University in the 2 p.m. curtain raiser.
UST saw its three-match winning run snapped following a 25-19, 25-22, 25-27, 22-25, 11-15 defeat to league-leading Ateneo last week.
The Lady Falcons suffered a heartbreaking 32-30, 20-25, 25-23, 20-25, 13-15 loss to the Lady Tamaraws last Sunday that dropped them at 1-7.
In the men’s division, titleholder NU shoots for the solo lead against University of the East at 8 a.m., to be followed by the 10 a.m. clash with Ateneo and De La Salle.
