Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraw Martin Bugaoan delivered on both offense and defense to stun the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Spikers, 25-23, 25-27, 25-22, 25-15, in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 86 men’s volleyball tourney earlier today, April 13, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila City.

The game's leading scorer recorded 15 attacks and six blocks.

In a post-game interview with FEU Advocate, Bugaoan highlighted confidence as the key to his efficient performance.

"Lagi ko lang tinatatak sa isipan ko 'yung consistency sa atake tsaka sa galaw sa loob ng court kasi du'n nagsisimula 'yung confidence sa sarili. Kailangan andu'n yung [confidence] ko, kahit ano mang mangyari, kahit mag-error, andu'n pa rin ‘yung focus ko sa game (I always keep in my mind the consistency in attacking and moving inside the court because that's where confidence starts. My confidence should be there, whatever happens, even if I commit an error, my focus is still there)," he said.

Both squads took the match slow from the get-go, but the Tamaraws built up their momentum to achieve a comfortable lead at 17-12 in the first set.

Unfortunately, Golden Spiker Josh Ybañez launched a 7-0 run with four of his 10 attacks in the set, putting them in the driver's seat.

In return, the Morayta-based squad continued playing efficiently with their shared offense, barely edging the España-based squad to take the frame.

The second set saw the start of Bugaoan's takeover with six attacks and two blocks, along with Zhydryx Saavedra getting seven kills. 

However, errors riddled the Tamaraws in the latter part of the set which was enough for the Golden Spikers to even the game out.

The faceoff of the rival schools remained close early in the third frame, leading to a 7-all deadlock. 

With Ybañez taking a backseat, FEU took advantage of the 5-8 unforced error disparity and Bugaoan's six attacks to go back one set up.

Despite their momentum going into the fourth set, the Morayta-based squad saw another 7-7 tie.

In order to pull away, Player of the Game Ariel Cacao took advantage of Bugaoan's attention from the defense, sharing the ball to their other hitters to separate from the España-based squad.

The Tamaraws also took a 6-1 block lead in the final frame, securing the victory.

With the end of the second round getting closer, Bugaoan expressed how they aim to be consistent to continue their success.

“Malapit na kami sa dulo, [magiging] consistent pa rin kami sa mga ginagawa namin. [Magfo-focus] kami sa mga error namin para ma-correct namin (We’re close to the end, we will still be consistent in what we do. We’ll focus on our errors to correct them),” he stated.

Wth their 10th win, the green-and-gold squad intend to remain strong against University of the East (UE) on Wednesday, April 17, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

-Vince Matthew Jaramilla

(Photo by Karch Rafael/FEU Advocate)