Green Spikers get ego-boosting win heading into crucial tiff

V-League 2023 – DLSU v SBU – DLSU huddle

For La Salle coach Jose Roque, it’s important for his Green Spikers to develop their confidence if they want to introduce themselves as a team to beat and establish a more cohesive unit moving forward and, ultimately, get the recognition they deserve.

“The way I see it, the name [of our school] itself is famous, but the [men’s volleyball] team is not well-known, so we wanted to make a statement that our team is a must-watch,” Roque said after an authoritative 25-15, 25-22, 16-25, 25-21 victory over San Beda in the men’s V-League Collegiate Challenge at Paco Arena.

And even after that win, Roque never stopped giving his charges the pep talk they need, for they will be facing bitter rival Ateneo next.

That game is slated Friday where San Beda takes on University Athletic Association of the Philippines powerhouse National University.

“What we are teaching them is more on trusting themselves because they have doubts,” Roque said of what he and his staff are doing lately. “They want to fight, but they are holding back so we need to encourage them to believe [in themselves].”

Roque believes they have built a talented team, skills-wise, and what’s left is for their players to have that confidence that could lead to better chemistry.“We need to make them understand that ‘You’ve gone so far, why go low? You need to move forward,’” Roque explained.La Salle’s only loss in its first three games—a character-building one—came at the hands of Far Eastern, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23, 16-25, 17-15, last week.

The Green Spikers showed a lot of spunk against San Beda and refused to have this one go down the wire again.

“Their (Green Spikers) desire to win helped, because both teams gave it their all in that game,” Roque said after the victory. INQ