Strong first round sans injured key players a confidence-booster for Tigresses, says Pepito

MANILA, Philippines — The UST Golden Tigresses ended their UAAP Season 87 women's volleyball first round campaign with a tough 25-23, 17-25, 25-19, 18-25, 9-15 loss to the defending champs NU Lady Bulldogs at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday.

Still, the Tigresses fared well through their first seven games, winning five of them even without key hitters Jonna Perdido, Xyla Gula and Kyla Cordora whom they lost to injuries.

Team captain and reigning Best Libero Detdet Pepito said that this just proves that UST can hold its own despite a depleted lineup, a confidence-booster for its upcoming games.

"This round really boosted our team's confidence, showing that we can still do well even without our key players. We just have to put in the work because our opponents are working hard," said Pepito.

"We need to double our efforts because their team is almost complete. We've lost a lot of players, and there's still a lot to improve, but the fact that we went to a fifth set against the reigning champions shows we're on the right track. It's all about hard work and the desire to win."

Pepito said the third seed Tigresses have their work cut out for them, stressing that their reception game needs a lot of improvement in particular.

With the opposition trying to avoid her sturdy floor defense, Pepito said that her teammates also need to do extra work on enhancing their reception skills.

"Our receiving really dropped, and it's been very challenging because all the teams are getting more tactical and avoiding me," shared Pepito.

"We'll keep pushing the team. Before, it was just the libero putting in the extra effort, but now, all the passers and players are stepping up. Also, with [Angge] Poyos' diagonal, we need to find the perfect match, but as of now, we haven't found it yet."

Pepito and the Golden Tigresses will begin their second round campaign against the seventh seed and 2-5 Adamson Lady Falcons on Wednesday.

"We'll keep pushing because it's unexpected that our record turned out like this, especially after our not-so-good performance in the first few games," said Pepito.

"But it's been better in the past few games. Overall, the first round has been a good measure of how much we're capable of."