ATENEO de Manila star Alyssa Valdez lamented the Lady Eagles’ lack of championship poise in their frustrating Game One loss to chief rival De La Salle on Saturday in Season 78 University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) women’s volleyball finals.
“We lacked self-confidence and we’re lacking killer instinct in this game,” said Valdez, pointing to their 22-25, 22-25, 21-25 loss to the Lady Spikers to trail 0-1 in their best-of-three championship series. “La Salle really gave us a good fight in today’s game, they were good and it really showed that they really wanted to win in this game.”
“Siguro as compared also sa team ng La Salle they’re really an experienced team and they’ve been entering the finals for how many years with that core,” she added.
Facing their longtime nemesis for the fifth straight year, the Lady Eagles led the early parts of the first two sets but La Salle, playing in its eight straight finals, flaunted its experience and familiarity of the atmosphere and fought their way back to take the first two sets then finished off the defending champions in the third set to take Game One.
Valdez was the lone double-digit scorer for Ateneo with 17 points.
This is the first time that the Lady Eagles are in a do-or-die situation or since erasing the thrice-to-beat advantage of the Lady Spikers in Season 76 to snatch their first-ever title.
But despite the ugly loss, the league’s two-time Most Valuable Player sets her sights on the crucial Game Two, as Ateneo tries to equalize the series on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“We’re on to the next game and that’s the goal,” said Valdez, who promised that Game Two won’t be her final match in the UAAP.