NU head coach Roger Gorayeb. Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Roger Gorayeb did not hold his emotions back after National University lost in three sets to defending champion De La Salle, 29-27, 25-16, 25-21, in the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball tournament Sunday at Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.
NU was riding a three-game win streak, and was one of the league-leaders, going into Sunday’s game but La Salle, which lost its last match against University of the Philippines, was on a warpath to redemption.
The Lady Bulldogs’ only relevant set was the first and it all went downhill from there.
Gorayeb demanded toughness from his team which has been dubbed as one of the premier squads this season after their success in the Shakey’s V-League during the preseason.
“You can be not tough physically, but you should always be tough mentally,” said Gorayeb, whose team now holds a 3-1 slate. “Because during practice it’s 99 percent physical and just one percent psychological, but it’s the opposite during actual games, it’s 99 percent psychological and one percent physical.”
“We need to develop the mental toughness of the young players who are going into college but if you’re in your third or fourth year you should be mentally and physically tough.”
NU was at the mercy of La Salle’s onslaught, which now holds a 3-1 card.
La Salle outscored NU, 34-25, in spikes, 14-5 in service aces, and interestingly enough the Lady Spikers also dominated the Lady Bulldogs 9-1 in blocks.
Coming into this game, the Lady Spikers were the best blocking team in the league with an average of 2.8 per set while NU was second with 2.45 and that figure is a glaring representation of how much the Lady Bulldogs faltered.
But more importantly for Gorayeb, it’s his team’s intangible that were in question.
“We didn’t do anything out of the ordinary, La Salle didn’t do anything out of the ordinary,” said Gorayeb. “The players themselves surrendered, they threw in the white towel really early.”