SPORTSCASTERS dubbed them as “super rookies,” these first-year players of the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons women’s volleyball team playing well beyond their years and experience.
Sportscasters sometimes overdo it when they assign monikers to athletes, but this time, they hit the nail on its head.
Isa Molde, Diane Carlos, Justine Dorog and Sheena Chopitea, all rookies, are indeed playing super, the reason why the Lady Maroons are up there at third place in the standings with a 7-4 record.
Of the four, Molde and Carlos have alternated in leading the UP belles in scoring, and both were instrumental in scoring a stunning upset of defending champion Ateneo in the first round. At one stretch in the second round, UP was on a four-game winning roll, before they were stopped by perennial title contender De La Salle. But the Maroons had since bounced back with an easy win over cellar-dweller UE Lady Warriors.
Ateneo and La Salle, with their full complement of seasoned players, still lead the pack with similar 9-2 cards and have secured a place in the Final Four, but the way the Lady Maroons are showing, I wouldn’t be surprised if they will soon join the Lady Eagles and the Lady Spikes in the coveted Top Four.
The emergence of super rookies such as Isa, formerly of Hope Christian High School and Diane, from the Sta. Cruz Academy in Lubao, Pampanga, who had chosen to play for the Lady Maroons and not for traditional sports powers De La Salle, Ateneo and UST should serve the UAAP in good stead.
In the past years, “rich” schools such as Ateneo, DLSU and UST almost always get the best players in almost every sport, especially in basketball and volleyball, because they have the resources and the facilities that come with the scholarships that they offer to the most talented athletes from the provinces. In turn, these athletes reward them with trophies and championships.
But not anymore. With tycoons expanding their reach to the academe, schools, which had traditionally lagged behind in terms of sports achievements have now reversed the trend. A perfect example of this is National University, which is now fully owned by the Sy family (of SM Supermalls). From perennial tailenders, the Bulldogs have turned into title contenders overnight, winning a basketball title a few years after the Sy family took over the school management.
Now, I don’t know who (or what group) is behind UP’s frenzied recruitment in volleyball that produced the likes of super rookies Molde and Carlos, but they are sure doing a super job.
