National University claimed the championship in the UAAP men’s volleyball tournament for the second straight year after a sweep of Ateneo in the season 76 finals. RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—The second-round setback to Ateneo became the push that National University needed to prepare hard.
And the Bulldogs reaped the best reward for their hard work as they swept the Blue Eagles in the finals on Wednesday for their second straight UAAP season 76 volleyball crown.
“When we lost to them in the second round, we weren’t that prepared, we didn’t have the right blocking or setting,” NU skipper Reuben Inaudito admitted.
“So when we got to the finals, we really prepared well every day for everything.”
“We thought we could handle them because they were young at the start of the season. But in the first round our game was close, and the second round their confidence was building. So we really studied their moves and plays,” head coach Dante Alinsunurin said.
The Bulldogs pounced on the inexperience of the Blue Eagles, who lacked the needed finishing, and won via shutout in the finals opener last Saturday.
But in Game 2, Ateneo came prepared and snatched a set from NU, hoping to get the spark that could drag the series to a decider.
“We weren’t rattled in that set. We just relaxed,” Inaudito, who went on to be the finals’ most valuable player, said.
Alinsunurin said the Bulldogs simply lacked the energy and had problems with their reception.
NU skipper Reuben Inaudito Photo by RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net
NU, though, quickly made up for that as it matched Ateneo’s intensity in the third set, then leaned on their veteran experience to wrap up the series in a wild fourth-set windup.
Inaudito, who has another year left with the Bulldogs, said last year’s trip to the finals helped them weather the Blue Eagles, especially the partisan crowd at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“It’s a bid advantage. We were exposed to crowds like this. We know how not to get affected by the crowd and focus on the game,” he said.
“It was a big factor because last year’s finals helped us how to deal with pressure. It was really big for them,” Alinsunurin echoed.
And these veterans who have been to the finals twice are coming back next year, with only a few players leaving the squad.
But, as it had been this year, defending that crown is not going to be any easier for the Bulldogs.
“It’s really hard to defend the title. Everyone else wants to be beat you because you’re at the top,” Inaudito said.