NU Men’s Lawn Tennis Team clinches Championship Title.

NU Men’s Lawn Tennis Team bounces back from their 4th place finish last season to champions. The strong comeback came from having a solid rookie lineup. The new is in, the old is out, and queue in the confidence boost for the revamped tennisters.

Captain EJ Tugade admits that his team’s only motivation was how they fell short last season. The team only had one goal: to be part of the top teams in the tournament.

“When it comes to line-up kasi, maraming nabago. Maraming na-add sa amin, maraming bagong pasok. Since may mga pinasok sila coach na mga katuwang ko , lalo na sa singles. Nagbigay lakas din yung doubles namin kasi may na-add din . Ayun, parang nagkaroon kami ng confidence. Since last time kasi, 4th placer kami. Ngayon, parang during training, parang ginawa namin na motivation yun, yung 4th place namin na gusto namin iangat yung aming spot na kailangan nasa top talaga kami ng rankings.” EJ shares with ALL-STAR. 

Complacency wasn’t an option for the underdogs after losing to UP in their first game; they made it their mission not to back down and lose momentum. Instead, they used this as a motivation to push harder and build themselves up.

“This first round, natalo kami sa UP yun yung isa rin namin na naging motivation. Parang ginawa namin siyang parang basehan ng motivation namin. Kaya kailangan namin na mag-bounce back, lalo na po sa second round kasi di po namin hahayaan na makukuha nila yung momentum. So kailangan po namin i-build up yung aming sarili, yung aming team na huwag magkumpiansa.”

No other choice but to fight back. Going against the UST Tennisters in the season’s finals, the boys from National University proved why they were the next ones to look out for. They gave their all and took risks with the mindset of having nothing to lose.

“Since malakas pa rin yung UST, I mean malakas pa rin po sila hanggang ngayon. But when it comes to lineup po kasi talaga yung in-aim po namin kung saan po yung gusto namin itapat yung mga player. Since may iniwasan, may tinatapat din po. But kung natapat naman po yung isa sa amin sa malakas sila na player like Nilo. Malakas po na player si Nilo. Pag natapat po ako kay Nilo, yun parang ilalaban ko na lang yung sarili ko. Nothing to lose ang mindset namin dyan.”

Tennis may be a singles or doubles game set up, but teamwork makes the dream work. They rely on each other rather than just a few players to win games. Never backing down and never giving up is the pathway to victory; it’s how the Bulldogs slowly pulled themselves to the top.

“Si Seb po kasi pagdating po sa game talagang yung fighting spirit niya talaga, hindi nawawala. Kaya yun nung natalo ako sa kanya, lamang na ako nun eh. Nagka-cramps na talaga ako, labanan na lang talaga ng puso. Patibayan na lang talaga ng puso kung sinong unang malalaglag o sinong unang matutumba. But still naabutan pa rin ako ng cramps, yun wala na akong magawa. But thank you rin sa team ko kasi sila yung gumapang talaga. Sila yung naggrind para manalo yung team.”

Setbacks are not new to the team, but he keeps their chin up and reminds them to push forward since the season isn’t over yet. The key to consistency is to do their best and fight until the end.

“Kasi sa amin, hindi talaga maiwasan na, may matalo. But, minomotivate lang namin talaga yung mga team namin. Kasi minsan, pag natalo yung isa sa amin, parang biglang nadodown yung moral. Sinasabihan namin na wag kang madodown, yung moral. Kasi nasa ano tayo, nasa UAAP pa tayo, hindi pa tapos yung laban. Kailangan natin mag-compete sa ibang players na bigay talaga yung best namin. Kasi when it comes to consistency, pinupush talaga namin yung sarili namin. Kahit lamang yung kalaban, kailangan pa rin namin na mag-focus na mahabol sila at manalo sa game.”

He set himself up to stay focused during the game and pushed his team to do the same. Keeping their eyes on the goal and staying consistent is how the team kept their momentum and spirit on for the entire tournament.

“Focus sa game, gawin lang yung best ko. Then huwag papaapekto sa mga distractions sa gilid. And then ano lang, focus lang sa goal na manalalo. Sinasabi ko sa kanila na keep the momentum. Huwag lang talaga, huwag mag pabaya sa sarili. Still, huwag isipin yung ranking na nasa top kami. Kailangan yung momentum ng team. Kailangan yung laro. I-give pa rin yung best namin hanggang sa dulo-dulo. Kailangan namin ibuhos yung lahat. Yung mindset namin na kailangan, andyan pa rin yung motivation ng school namin na NU. Stay hungry, stay humble. Kailangan din mag-aim talaga na manalo sa bawat laban.”

The NU Men’s Lawn Tennis team not only got into the top 3 as they wished but was rewarded with the championship title after their last win in Season 81. Hard work and perseverance do pay off eventually.