DLSU’s ‘heart-strong’ will make difference

MANILA, Philippines — Former La Salle star Manilla Santos-Ng believes the Lady Spikers’ big fighting heart will spell the difference between victory and defeat as they face the Far Eastern University Lady Tams in Game One of the UAAP Season 80 women’s volleyball finals today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

DLSU and FEU foiled semis foes National University and Ateneo, respectively, to forge a clash for the crown, the first since season 71 where Santos-Ng steered the Lady Spikers to the championship in come-from-behind fashion after trailing, 0-1.

Santos-Ng, then in her final playing year, also nabbed the Most Valuable Player honors as well as the Best Receiver recognition.

DLSU then retired her No. 14 jersey in a fitting ending to an illustrious collegiate career highlighted by four championships, including the school’s first three-peat.

“They (Lady Spikers) reached this stage because of hard work. It will all boil down to execution and heart,” said the 33-year-old Santos-Ng, now seven years married and mom to two kids, six-year-old Kenzi and one-year-and-four-month old Keyla.

Santos-Ng noted that both DLSU and FEU are strong teams, making it an exciting finals matchup.

The Lady Spikers are gunning for their third three-peat while the Lady Tamaraws are eyeing their first title since season 70 and 30th overall.

“Both teams are strong. Although La Salle could capitalize on its blocking as well as its service. Dawn Macandili executes well on defense and as for offense, everybody can contribute. La Salle also has a deep bench. The players just have to work as a team and enjoy,” said Santos-Ng, full-time homemaker and part-time makeup artist.

“FEU is also strong offensively. They have very agile players. They could also hold their own on defense. They are also consistent. So this is really an exciting match,” she added.

Santos-Ng, who shied away from the volleyball spotlight since to focus on taking care of her young family, admitted to missing the on-court action after fans tagged her on game videos of their season 71 encounter with then Rachel Daquis-led FEU.

“In Game Three, we were experiencing a lot of body pains already. But I told them this is the last game. Maghiwalay na lahat ng maghihiwalay. Kahit ‘yung mga balakang natin kung kailangan. Our mindset was just to get the crown,” recalled Santos-Ng, also the captain that season.

“There was a huge crowd. We couldn’t hear each other anymore and we resorted to using sign language. FEU had fast plays then. We just helped each other. We enjoyed and stayed focused,” added Santos-Ng.