UE’s Clarence Gianan rises fora kill. —UAAP MEDIA
The University of the East rediscovered the composure of a true contender on Thursday, outlasting National University–Nazareth School in a dramatic five-set showdown that pushed the Junior Warriors to the brink of ending an 11-year title drought in UAAP boys volleyball. What looked like another test of nerve became an affirmation of a team learning, at last, how to win the hardest matches.
UE’s 25-22, 21-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-13 victory at the Blue Eagle Gym was far from flawless. The Junior Warriors squandered a commanding lead in the final set, looked shaky when pressure peaked, and at times seemed on the verge of letting the game slip away. But the difference this time was an intangible shift in posture: they refused to blink. And that shift is something second-year head coach Herbert Dizon says was long overdue.
He had spent weeks telling them one thing: trust the work, trust each other, and believe they belong on this stage.
That message finally landed.
The win also served as a narrative pivot in a postseason once defined by heart-stopping escapes. The Junior Warriors have now gone to five sets in all three of their playoff outings, burning through their twice-to-beat cushion in the Final Four and surviving two do-or-die scenarios before this championship opener. Instead of draining them, those pressure cookers appear to have hardened their resolve.
Paul Roque once again drove UE’s offense with 22 kills, while Emmanuel Marcelino delivered a steady two-way performance anchored by 15 points and 24 receptions. Clarence Gianan and Miguel Catanghal added 11 points each, and setter Mharl Dullete orchestrated the attack with 30 excellent sets that kept UE afloat during their lapses. Gianan summed up the win simply: everyone found a way.
On the other side of the net, the Bullpups—fresh off an emotional victory over UST—fought with the same edge that carried them through the semifinals. Xandrex Ragusta kept NU alive with 18 points and a late-game spark that nearly turned the tide. Al-raquib Dais was a wall in the middle with eight blocks, finishing with 13 points alongside Christian Mangahoy.
Yet despite NU’s surges and UE’s stumbles, the night belonged to the Warriors who learned, point by point, how to keep their composure.
Game 2 now looms large this Sunday at 2 p.m., still at the Blue Eagle Gym. One more win, and UE completes a long-awaited return to the throne it last occupied in 2014. One more stand for NU, and the series explodes into a winner-take-all.
After Thursday’s marathon, only one thing is certain: both squads have emptied their hearts into this finals. But UE has placed itself one set of heroics away from rewriting its history.