Topsy-turvy volleyball season

FOR THE first time in perhaps two decades, the games of the women’s volleyball tournament are delightfully unpredictable. Even if you exclude the struggling University of the East Lady Red Warriors (who could pull off a surprise of their own if they get their act together), the whole season has been marked by unexpected victories and decisive onslaughts.

Let’s start with the obvious big win so far. The return of La Salle’s confidence and even its swagger was clear in its straight-sets win over archrival Ateneo that was previously unbeaten in 24 games. Loaded serves and a determined defense by the Lady Spikers revealed their excellent preparation against the team they once beat routinely until the confidence balance shifted in favor of the Lady Eagles over the last two years.

But the other wins have been just as interesting, if not engaging. To name a few, National University and University of Santo Tomas have already trounced La Salle. UST has also beaten NU while University of the Philippines, displaying the benefits of playing regularly in the Shakey’s V-League before the UAAP season, edged NU.

The Lady Maroons didn’t stop there. They stunned the Lady Eagles in four sets last Sunday.

The race for Final Four slots will be close to a photo-finish. No team is guaranteed safe sailing anymore. La Salle and Ateneo are faced with the reality that even teams they routinely beat over the last two years have a chance to upend them. The race will most likely be for the two remaining spots and will be most likely be disputed by NU, UST and UP. Far Eastern University can still join this neck-and-neck race.

Aggressive recruitment and participation in tournaments prior to the UAAP season have been definitely helpful to many of the current contenders. UP is perhaps the clearest example. Coach Jerry Yee has put together a team of seasoned veterans with some once unheralded rookies and whipped them into fighting form.

As always, Yee tries to make volleyball a common-sense journey for the players.  Once, in a timeout, Yee told his players to move their legs instead of painstakingly stretching their arms to make a dig. Moving their legs will get players to position first and there won’t be much need to strain and stretch to keep the ball in play.

Then, there’s the inexplicable “trance” that some teams fall into when they can’t seem to find a solution to an offensive tear by the opposing side. Ateneo couldn’t receive against La Salle’s service and fell into a stupor that subsequently led to the rout. Then, La Salle found itself unable to get a grip of the game against gritty UST.

Once a serving team can get into a scoring rhythm, the rotation on the floor can stay practically the same. A strong set of frontline hitters could stay there interminably and be the undoing of the receiving team. The rotation does not also move on the other side and coaches can only change players and hope that some defensive adjustments will work immediately.

Coaches shake their heads and often fail to understand why this happens to a team that can play so well in one game and just fall apart in the next. Their timeouts will just have to be precisely called and not simply be a ranting session about what a team is failing to do on the floor.  Trust issues will also have to be settled so that struggling for the ball and position don’t become train wrecks.