The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons kicked off their University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) volleyball campaigns with double five-setter wins in the men and women’s division on Saturday, Feb. 15, at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena.
Their youthful rosters are full of hope in reigniting State U’s desire to rise above their previous bottom finishes last season.
Among the new pool of talents, two stood out in snagging the victories.
A Raheem-arkable debut
New recruit and foreign student-athlete Olayemi Raheem paved the way for the UP Men’s Volleyball Team (MVT) in a hard-earned, come-from-behind victory against the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors to open the UAAP Season 87 Volleyball Tournaments.
Despite his first time in the Philippine collegiate league, the 19-year-old Nigerian spiker stepped up for the Diliman-based squad after scoring 25 points from 24 attacks and a block.
“Actually, I have to try to learn how to play Philippine [volleyball] games because it’s quite fast, a lot of fastballs. It’s a really big challenge but, with the help of Coach and my teammates, I was able to adapt,” Raheem said during the post-game press conference.
Before coming into the UAAP, Raheem became part of the Nigeria National Team that took home the U-19 division title at the 2022 African National Volleyball Championship, where he was also hailed as the Best Outside Spiker.
Coming off the bench, Raheem made a statement in the second frame after scoring multiple points and hitting back-to-back down-the-line attacks at the end to seal the deuce set, 25-13.
The standout spiker delivered four crucial points in the nail-biting fifth set, pushing UP to match point, 14-13, before State U capitalized on the errors of the Red Warriors to snatch the win.
Within the stress-inducing environment of the cheers and chants, Raheem tuned out the noise to retain a laser-sharp focus throughout the match.
“For me, it’s kind of like a new experience, having a lot of people, with drums, and everything, but I never listened to that. Like what coach said, we have to focus on our preparations for the game,” said Raheem. “I only focused on what was happening inside the court. I knew my teammates needed me, so I did my role, and they did theirs. That’s why we won.”
The victory also marked UP’s back-to-back triumphs over UE, following their five-set encounter during the conclusion of the Season 86 eliminations.
Putting his individual performance aside, the rookie commended his teammates’ efforts that led them to the win.
“Team effort and then we actually know what we wanted—especially each and every one of my teammates. We did our responsibility on the court,” said Raheem in a post-game interview with Tinig ng Plaridel (TNP).
Newly appointed UP MVT head coach Carlo Cabatingan praised the rookies for their composure under pressure, with a note of Raheem’s addition boosting the team’s chances of contending for the title this season.
“It was quite a learning experience. We kind of expected that this would happen, that the team’s performance would not go as planned, but the fact that they managed their emotions, challenges, and issues—I think that was one of our best games so far and we will continue to try,” said Cabatingan in the post-game press conference.
Along with Raheem, Daniel Nicolas contributed 14 points, while Angelo Lagando and Tommy Castrodes both backstopped with 7 markers each for the Diliman-based squad.
Kianne’t be stopped
While rookies often face their debut with first-game jitters and sweaty palms, Kianne Olango, took her first day in the collegiate volleyball league by storm.
Hitting attack after attack in a thrilling five-setter, she was one of the key players in the UP Women’s Volleyball Team (WVT) in defusing University of the East’s attempts in their season opener.
Her undeniable talent is not new to the volleyball scene as Olango has made a name for herself as a former lady bullpup with the National University Nazareth School (NUNS).
She clawed her way up, eventually securing the Season 85 MVP, two-time Best Opposite Hitter, and Season 86 silver medal under her belt.
The rookie introduced herself as a valuable addition to the Lady Maroons, strengthening the hopes of the Diliman-based squad to get a taste of a winning culture after their 8th place finish last season.
The 19-year-old rookie heated the game up in the cold arena after racking up 15 points, tallying on 11 attacks and four blocks.
She is not alone in this fight as she finds her fellow NUNS Lady Bullpups Yesha Noceja and Bienne Bansil by her side in the same team—a comfort she finds when facing bigger crowds.
Olango told TNP, “Syempre masaya po pero parang sanay na rin po ako kasi [ma]tagal na po kaming magkasama eh and I think I’m proud of us rin na nasa MOA na kami.”
Her impressive debut does not warrant her leniency as she sees the opportunity to further improve her and the UP WVT’s play, especially after the 2-0 lead almost slipped their fingers.
“Today, my performance was not the very best and kailangan ko lang ibalik ‘yung sarili ko and work sa training for the next games,” she said.
She asserts that as a Fighting Maroon, she must exude the university’s motto in game saying, “[K]ailangan ko po maging matapang at matalino,” in the post-game press conference.
Olango’s goals are not solely for herself but rather, she wishes that the Diliman-based squad will break the decade-long Final Four drought, a feat that she wants to achieve by strengthening chemistry with her “ates” Nica Celis, Nina Ytang, Joan Monares, and Irah Jaboneta.
“Ang pinaka-goal ko talaga ay mag-Final Four kami, especially para sa mga ates namin na matagal na gusto nilang mag-Final Four. That’s my number one goal talaga […] Gusto ko talaga yung nagle-learn sa kanila,” she said.
Both squads look forward to maintaining their winning momentum in their next match against the FEU Tamaraws on Feb. 19, at the FilOil EcoOil Centre, with UP MVT serving at 3 p.m. while the UP WVT takes on the taraflex at 5 p.m.
MVT SET SCORES: 19-25, 25-23, 24-26, 25-16, 18-16
WVT SET SCORES: 25-18, 26-24, 24-26, 13-25, 15-13
