The Lady Tamaraws celebrate after debuting with a straight-sets win in the V-League Collegiate Challenge. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Tina Salak called the shots for Far Eastern’s women’s volleyball team for just a full season before migration to the United States called, but despite that, the Lady Tamaraws continue to play with Salak-like character.
Interim coach Manolo Refugia will be the first to admit that the Salak system is still in place and that the team wouldn’t be veering away from that anytime soon as the Lady Tamaraws campaign in the V-League Collegiate Challenge.
“When coach Tina left the team, it didn’t feel like she did because her presence is still there. She always calls through video during training, the coach Tina we know that would call each and every one is still there,” said Refugia, who jokingly impersonated Salak.
One of the most prominent products of the Far Eastern program, Salak abruptly stepped down after just falling short of steering the Lady Tamaraws to the Final Four of the last UAAP season as her family’s application for migration was approved after a long wait.
While maintaining the status quo in the system, Refugia intends to keep building on what Salak started and improve from there.
“Our system will remain the same. We will continue it and add a few things to have a better result,” Refugia said after the Lady Tamaraws triumphed against the Mapua Lady Cardinals in straight sets, 25-13, 25-18, 25-15, to pull the curtains down on the V-League Collegiate Challenge at Paco Arena in Manila on Wednesday.
Star player
The system, after all, works as the Lady Tamaraws exhibited solid play behind the leadership of Tin Ubaldo.
“There is so much more room for improvement,” Ubaldo said. “There is so much more to learn. We’ve yet to reach the exciting part.”
Refugia, meanwhile, is excited at seeing Ubaldo become better just to help the team.
“She is learning a lot, maybe that’s why she is getting more confident because she knows that she has the skills to back it up,” Refugia said.
Far Eastern is in the V-League to achieve a solid system with every piece doing its part while improving on the things that they would want to work on, obviously, for a deeper run in the UAAP.
Meanwhile, College of St. Benilde will be parading its core that will be coming off a stint in the professional Premier Volleyball League (PVL) when the Lady Blazers tangle with Lyceum at the resumption of the elimination round at Paco Arena in Manila Thursday.
Gayle Pascual, Jade Gentapa, Michelle Gamit, Wielyn Estoque and Cloanne Mondonedo hope to use the experience they gained while playing for Farm Fresh in the PVL as the defending NCAA champions take on the Lady Pirates starting at 2 p.m. with an eye on breaking the UAAP’s dominance in the league.