Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
As the Final Four race in the UAAP Season 80 women’s volleyball shapes up, one team is determined to put itself near the apex once everything is set.
Far Eastern University is at stable ground after Saturday when it thwarted University of the Philippines in four sets, 21-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-22, to take the third seed in the standings.
The Lady Tamaraws, who improved to a 7-4 card, are still in contention for the top two spots of the standings and skipper Bernadeth Pons won’t stop at nothing from leading her team to get that twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four.
“We still have three remaining games and we have to win all of those if we ever want to get one of those two spots,” said Pons in Filipino at Filoil Flying V Centre. “Getting either the first or second spot will give us the advantage in the semifinals.”
For the past three seasons the Lady Tamaraws never cracked the top two of the standings with both Ateneo and La Salle comprising the duopoly of the twice-to-beat club.
Since 2015, the Lady Tamaraws lasted just one game in the semifinals with Season 78 being the lone Final Four wherein FEU managed to stick for one more game after forcing De La Salle to a rubber match.
This string of early semifinals exits was enough fuel for Pons, who has been with the Lady Tamaraws since 2014 and had experienced all those Final Four losses.
“For the past years we’ve always been on the bottom half of the semifinals and we weren’t able to beat our opponents,” said Pons, who had 15 points against the Lady Maroons. “We really want that twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four.”