De Jesus, La Salle ‘lucky’ to have passed UST trial in Final Four

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

Ramil De Jesus and his De La Salle Lady Spikers are headed to their ninth straight UAAP volleyball finals, but they first had to get through University of Santo Tomas.

Though it ended in just one game with the Lady Spikers taking a four-set win, 25-14, 25-20, 24-26, 25-13, De Jesus said he was “lucky” to have survived the Golden Tigresses.

“That team’s no joke, especially if you compare them to what they were a year ago,” said De Jesus Saturday at Smart Araneta Coliseum. “UST improved by a lot. Actually it’s one those teams that I’m really scared of, and we were lucky to get past them.”

READ: La Salle barges into ninth straight finals, ousts UST

UST was a lowly 5-9 team in Season 78 but the Golden Tigresses roared to the inverse of that figure and finished the season behind La Salle as the third seeds.

De Jesus said the only thing stopping UST from reaching the next level in the UAAP is the team’s lack of exposure in big situations.

The graduating Pam Lastimosa is the lone Golden Tigress who has experienced a Final Four, with the rest getting into the grand ball for just the first time in their collegiate careers.

READ: De Jesus admits 2nd loss to Ateneo a blow to team’s confidence

“I think they need more exposure,” said De Jesus. “What’s scary about UST, even if they don’t receive the ball well, they have those two outside hitters who will score no matter what.”

De Jesus pointed out the duo of EJ Laure and Cherry Rondina who averaged almost a combined 50 points a game during the eliminations.

“When other teams fail to execute a proper receive, they have a hard time scoring because they don’t have outside hitters with the caliber of those two.”