Defending champion De La Salle hasn’t experienced defeat in its last eight games in the UAAP Season 80 women’s volleyball tournament, and reigning MVP Mary Joy Baron effectively let out a warning for all the other three entrants of the Final Four.
The Lady Spikers will enter the semifinals as the top seed after a 12-2 elimination round campaign and even though they easily thwarted Ateneo in straight sets, 26-24, 25-17, 25-19, Baron said they’re far from their best possible form.
“We’re happy with the way we’ve played, but we’re not even peaking yet,” said Baron in Filipino Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena. “We want to enter the semifinals as a better team and as one unit.”
Baron’s co-captain Kianna Dy said they’re just working doubly harder as they prepare to exit La Salle in the best way possible.
Dy said they’re treating every game as if it’s their last, but reaching optimum form is far from their agenda despite ending the elimination round on a high note.
“We’re treating every game like it’s our last, of course we’ll go all out,” said Dy, who will graduate La Salle this 2018 with Baron, in Filipino. “It’s now or never for every game, of course the next game would be in the semifinals so we’ll work double-time for that.”
Although, the Lady Spikers are yet to achieve perfect form, Baron said they want to enter the Final Four with their confidence level on its highest.
Baron, who finished with nine points, said that even though their game against Ateneo had no bearing whatsoever on their standings, they want to build enough momentum going into the semifinals.
“This game had less pressure on us because it held no bearing, but we want to play the right way so we can get the confidence come the semifinals,” said Baron.
Dy, who scored a team-high 13 points, said playing the right way helped them build the confidence even though they haven’t lost in their past eight games.
“It’s a mental thing because if you’re confident it will help you play your game,” said Dy. “So we had to go all out because we don’t have anything to lose.”