FOR THE sixth straight year, the UST Golden Tigresses are back in the Final Four. But things are looking different this time, with team captain and libero Detdet Pepito bracing for what would be her swan song.
Bearing this in mind, the two-time Best Libero stood firm on what drives her in these closing chapters of her UAAP career: to win the crown.
“Sinasabi ko sa sarili ko, hindi ako nag-last playing year para matalo,” Pepito told The Flame.
(“I always tell myself that I didn’t play my last playing year just to lose.”)
Pepito capped her final UAAP elimination round as the league’s third-best digger with 3.58 excellent digs per set. She rose to the occasion in UST’s four-set win over the FEU Lady Tamaraws to clinch the last semifinal slot, tallying 18 digs, 15 receptions and an 88.24% reception efficiency rate.
Despite surviving a do-or-die playoff to enter the Final Four, the Tigresses carry the weight of losses against every team ahead of them in the stepladder — Adamson, NU and DLSU. The Thomasian squad is also in for a tough task, with every battle now a knockout match from here on out.
Inconsistency haunted the Tigresses as strong stretches ended in late-game lapses, with composure slipping when it mattered most.
“Okay naman kami kapag 1–20, pero ‘pag crucial doon talaga lumalabas yung errors,” Pepito said.
(“We’re able to build a lead but during crucial moments, we tend to commit errors.”)
For Pepito and the rest of the Tigresses, it’s a pattern they can no longer afford. Graduating senior Xyza Gula vowed that the squad’s rocky start would not define how their season ends.
“We may not have started strong this season, but hopefully we can still finish strong,” Gula told The Flame after delivering nine points and 11 digs in the do-or-die playoff for No. 4.
“One game at a time, one point at a time. We also need to be patient with ourselves,” she added.
The Shaq delos Santos-led UST had an up-and-down elimination round, finishing with an 8–6 record to tie for the last semifinal slot. All six of its losses came at the hands of the three other teams in the Final Four stepladder. A slow 2–3 start — its worst since Season 80 — put the Tigresses on the back foot early, and they ultimately missed an outright semifinals berth after absorbing a five-set loss to the defending champions Lady Bulldogs.
Standing in the first step of the ladder are the third-seeded Lady Falcons, who are making their first semifinal appearance since Season 85. Adamson, led by the MVP Shaina Nitura, swept UST in the elimination round, with both wins coming in straight sets.
It was a closely fought first-round encounter before Adamson pulled away with a dominant 20–6 run in the third set to seal a 27–25, 25–22, 25–12 sweep. Opposite hitter Reg Jurado led the scoring load for UST that game with 17 attacks and an ace, but star spiker Angge Poyos was limited to only five points and two digs.
The Tigresses continued to struggle in their second-round rematch as the trio of Nitura, Fhei Sagaysay and Frances Mordi once again outmatched the Poyos-Jurado duo via another sweep, 27-25, 25-20, 26-24.
As a sophomore setter, Sagaysay won the Best Setter race by ranking second in setting with 4.94 sets per game and first in serving with 22 aces. She orchestrated Adamson’s offense as Nitura delivered a triple-double performance with 19 points, 10 digs and 14 receives, complemented by foreign student-athlete Mordi’s 18-point outing.
If UST hopes to secure a podium spot, it will need to lean on its offensive core, led by Poyos, who led the league in spiking efficiency at 39.68%. She is the first Tigress since Eya Laure in Season 81 to achieve this feat.
Providing additional firepower is Jurado, who finished fifth in spiking efficiency (36.76%) at the end of the eliminations, while senior setter Cassie Carballo helps steady the offense, ranking third in setting with a 4.92 average per set.
Entering the semifinals for the first time in their collegiate careers, rookie middle blockers dubbed as the “Bronuliar” duo have also emerged as key pieces for the Tigresses.
Former UST high school standouts Avril Bron and Lianne Penuliar stepped up as starters, providing a much-needed stability at the net on both offense and defense.
With the starting lineup intact, the Tigresses will also see the return of senior open spiker Jonna Perdido to the semifinals. After recovering from an ACL injury, she has provided the much-needed veteran presence, alongside Pepito.
UST looks to keep its season alive against Adamson on Wednesday, April 29, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. A win by the Tigresses would set up a showdown with their tormentors from NU.
The last time the Tigresses faced the stepladder format was in Season 84, when the Bella Belen-led Lady Bulldogs swept the season and went on to win the championship. That year, UST finished fourth and also marked Pepito’s debut in the seniors division. F
