Heading into second round, UE taps Warrior mode

Nessa Bangayan (left) is one of the bright spots in the UE roster. —UAAP MEDIA

To say that University of the East (UE) has had a difficult UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament campaign so far would be an understatement.

At the end of the first round of eliminations, the Lady Warriors are at the bottom of the standings, burdened by a 0-7 (win-loss) record—a difficult but not surprising position to be in considering the many departures that hounded UE before the start of this season.

“I can say that [the players who transferred] left us with a big [hole], but we need to find a solution because there’s nothing we can do about that anymore,” UE interim coach Allan Mendoza told the Inquirer in Filipino.

The biggest losses came in the likes of former California Academy stalwarts like Casiey Dongallo and playmaker Kizzie Madriaga, two rising stars who powered UE during its one-win season last year.

The two, along with Jelai Gajero, redshirted this season to play for University of the Philippines next season.

Former UE coach Jerry Yee and assistant Obet Vital joined the players’ transfer to Diliman.

That left the Lady Warriors facing tall odds and the prospects of a really difficult season.

“But we’re still really trying to get a win,” Mendoza said.

Always short

With the way their campaign has gone so far, that goal might look bleak but not impossible with reliable scorers still fighting for the Lady Warriors such as the returning Nessa Bangayan and Khy Cepada, who have remained steadfast in trying to turn things around.

Although UE doesn’t have any wins to show, the Lady Warriors can somehow cling to the small wins it got to build on—taking two sets from the Fighting Maroons and the Blue Eagles and a set versus established programs University of Santo Tomas and La Salle.

“We always fell short in some games … we are really lacking in applying the finishing touches,” Mendoza said.

But if there’s one thing that Mendoza hopes for UE, it’s to stay true to its values.

“We will show a much fiercer Lady Warriors [in the second round],” he said. “We will be braver and more eager to get wins … [with what] happened before the start of the season, It’s hard to lift their morale.

“But you can see that during games, they are fighting.”