![League and team officials gather for a photo opportunity during the press conference. —AUGUST DELA CRUZ](https://sports.inquirer.net/files/2023/09/Sports534877-620x349.jpg)
League and team officials gather for a photo opportunity during the press conference. —AUGUST DELA CRUZ
The University of Santo Tomas (UST) hopes its rising stars and holdovers will absorb the impact of the loss of its former standouts.
“Since we have lost many important players, our main goal is to see our remaining players stand out, especially those who played in the UAAP last time,” said UST assistant coach Lerma Giron on the sidelines of Shakey’s Super League ( SSL). Preseason Championship press conference on Thursday.
The Golden Tigresses lost former team captain Eya Laure and attacking stalwarts Imee Hernandez and Milena Allesandrini after the veterans exhausted their playing years in the UAAP. Laure and Hernandez have since moved to the Premier Volleyball League.
But the future looks bright for the Golden Tigresses with their holdovers – Bernadett Pepito, Regina Jurado, Xyza Gula and Ypril Tapia – ushering in a new era for UST, along with a surprising rookie corps.
“The great thing is that we have rookies who stand out so much [it’s important that they get] the maturity and that this will make their decision-making stable (SSL), hopefully their game will become more mature so that when the UAAP comes there will be no more problems,” Giron said.
The Tigresses’ bronze medal at the recently concluded Invitational Conference helped them assess how to navigate moving forward, while incoming rookie Angeline Poyos delivered a solid performance.
“We didn’t expect her (Poyos) to stand out and we hope she will continue to improve and that this will be a way – even if she is not playing as a rookie – to raise her level of play,” Giron said. added.
With a full 19-man line-up in the preseason tournament and the clear aim to perform well in the UAAP, Giron revealed that their SSL squad will be their UAAP team as the Tigresses work on their fitness and will soon include fielding exercises in their training. course.
“We have high expectations (for the players). We have to show it [our] trust in them so they will be motivated to execute how we want them to play,” Giron said.
Read Next
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to access The Philippine Daily Inquirer and over 70 titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am and share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
For feedback, complaints or questions, please contact us.