Proceed with caution: La Salle not lowering guard as F4 nears

De La Salle University is just three wins away from completing an elimination round sweep and clinching an outright entry to the finals of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 88 women’s volleyball tournament.

Still, the Lady Spikers’ coaching staff constantly reminds players not to look too far ahead but to focus on the task at hand.

“We’ve been telling them (players) not to pressure themselves on maintaining our unbeaten run,” long-time deputy Noel Orcullo said after La Salle’s 25-17, 25-22, 23-25, 19-25, 15-10, win over feisty Far Eastern University on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena for its 11th straight win.

The Lady Spikers have secured a Final Four twice-to-beat advantage and, more importantly, drew closer to the team’s first-ever elims sweep since 2014.

But Orcullo would rather see the squad take the last three assignments, including a rematch of last year’s finals against three-peat-seeking National University on 19 April, with a one game at a time approach.

“We can’t dwell on that urge of completing a sweep. Just play it one game at a time. Focus on our training, what we are preparing for and the team that we’re going up against,” he said.

“Let’s take the sweep out of our minds and just focus on what we started.”

La Salle’s next two matches are against also-ran but upset-conscious teams in Ateneo de Manila University on Saturday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre and winless University of the East on Wednesday at the University of Santo Tomas Quadricentennial Pavilion.

Although favored to get past the two cellar-dwellers, the Lady Spikers’ are keeping their guards up, facing the squads that have nothing to lose.

“We have to respect whoever our opponent is. Whether they’re winless or struggling to get a win, we have to respect them. Just stay focused on our preparation and game plan and give them respect because they will be playing with no pressure,” Orcullo said.

“We have more to lose, so we need to stay focused and not take them lightly.”

An elims sweep by La Salle will trigger a stepladder semifinals format for the first time since the Bella Belen-led Lady Bulldogs swept their way into the throne back in 2022.