By Vanessa Pagharion
A History of Greatness
The battle began two years ago when half of a champion team graduated. For three straight years, the DLSU Graduate School Lady Spikers held the coveted title of the Inter-Grad Friendship Games Women’s Volleyball Competition. It was a position of recognition for these ladies whose skills and teamwork continued to echo through the hearts of many year after year. They were giants with a heart as strong as their spirits, drawing family and friends who watched their games, cheering and applauding as the team exhibited sheer determination in achieving their goal… the crown.
But just as the mythical phoenix bursts into flames before its resurrection, our champions’ regime must come to a subtle slumber.
The Calm Before the Storm
A new season dawns, the Lady Spikers, now armed with a new leader, Coach Chie Saet, the young team awakens. Only three of the veteran players remain and soon new teammates will come in. They all knew it was not going to be easy. But Coach Chie, a Lady Spiker herself, who possessed the same heart and spirit expected that the game will be tough so her team needs to be tougher.
Training ensued twice a week for the Lady Spikers with sweat rolling down their cheeks and muscles tearing from their backs. Whether they were a veteran player or a novice they all worked individually to get better and stronger. At game time, the team realized being strong as a player was not enough. As the saying goes, teamwork simply states less of Me and more of We and that is exactly what the team needed… teamwork.
As one season ended and another began, the message became clearer to the Lady Spikers that they have to act like a team to become a team. Each player had to use their skills to complement the strength of the other but that thought is easier said than done. From last season’s lineup, a few more members had been added to complete the squad once again.
Keeping up with the rigors of training was a feat for the players. As MBA, MA, MS and MBA – JD students, they had to manage their schedules for training, academics, work, and personal lives to make sure that they don’t fail in any of those aspects. But as the saying goes, when one becomes a jack of all trades he becomes a master of none, consequently the ladies began to falter at training. However, Coach Chie, determined to dig out the best from her team constantly reminded them that playing volleyball is just like taking an exam; that just as we study before a test, we have to make ourselves stronger before a game, and just as we learn what we study, we have to put to heart what is taught at training. As the team placed second in the roster and another hard fought season ended the Lady Spikers learned, the hard way, what it meant to live for the moment, forget everything else, and focus at the task at hand. Read more…
