SWOT Analysis of UAAP Season 77 Women’s Volleyball

So we’re done with the 2nd round. Below are my SWOT analyses for every team in the 1st round of UAAP Women’s Volleyball. Enjoy!

UE (8th, 0-7)

STRENGTHS:
Coach and to be fair, their blocking really improved and in a way, their floor defense
WEAKNESSES:
Winning attitude, No leader, No offense, Setting
OPPORTUNITIES:
To be frank, they are out of the competition. I hope they will use this 2nd round to grow, to learn from opponents and to be better for next year. Likewise, the off-season should be a good time for them to get experience, get their selves exposed and to recruit better.
THREATS:
– None

UST (7th, 2-5)

STRENGTHS:
Blocking has always been the strength of Odjie Mamon’s system. Offense is loaded. You have Lastimosa, Rondina, Laure, Tunay, Meneses, De Leon.
WEAKNESSES:
Leadership, In-game Mentality, Teamwork, Consistency. Setting sometimes and floor defense.
OPPORTUNITIES:
Use their new found confidence. They still have a chance to make it to the Final Four, they just have to win like 5/7 of their 2nd round games to make it. Based on their 2nd round games, they can match up well, they just can’t match up well.
THREATS:
Of course, there are like 4 other teams in search of a Final Four berth so they need to work double time if they really want to make it. Peaking teams. Ateneo and La Salle.

FEU (6th, 3-4)

STRENGTHS:
Floor defense and offense. They have a lot of good attackers too; Basas, Pons, Palma, Casugod, Simborio.
WEAKNESSES:
Consistency, Leadership and In-game mentality. Yeah, consistency. They won against NU, had a close game with La Salle but then they lost to UST in 4 and to Adamson in 3.
OPPORTUNITIES:
Use their floor defense and blocking. Though they are at 6th, they are at par with 3 other teams so they just need to beat the other teams tied with them for them to enter the Final Four.
THREATS:
Peaking teams. If they won’t pick up their game and be consistent, it’s gonna be hard for them to catch up. Ateneo and La Salle.

Adamson (5th, 3-4)

STRENGTHS:
Strong start. Strong wingers (Paat, Villanueva and Galanza). Of course, their FLOOR DEFENSE has always been their strength. Resiliency.
WEAKNESSES:
Like the two teams mentioned above, consistency. They had good games before the year ended but when 2015 came in, they lost back to back. I don’t know if they are still in vacation mode but they need to start winning again.
OPPORTUNITIES:
Lucky for them, they are 3-4 and they are tied with 2 other teams so they can still catch up. They have good wingers, so they can use the three to dominate.
THREATS:
Peaking teams and since 5 of them are still in search of a Final Four berth, they need to win most, if not all of their games. Ateneo and La Salle.

UP (4th, 3-4)

STRENGTHS:
Good coach, Low-fast offense, floor defense, blocking, setting. Almost everything really. Offense is loaded as well in Angeli Araneta, Nicole Tiamzon, Yen Ilustre and Vina Alinas.
WEAKNESSES:
Experience. They have it all, just the end game composure of all the players.
OPPORTUNITIES:
If they can make it close with the strong teams, who knows, in the 2nd round they can win over them. Let’s see. They need to ride on with momentum and beat the other teams.
THREATS:
Kathy Bersola’s injury. Although they are at #4, it’s not a safe ranking since like I said, there are 5 teams chasing the Final Four berths so they need to double their effort in the 2nd round. Ateneo and La Salle.

NU (3rd, 4-3)

STRENGTHS:
Based on their first two games and the last two games, floor defense. Coach Roger Gorayeb and Jaja Santiago. They have a good coach and a milking cow. Aside from Jaja Santiago, they still have a Myla Pablo and promising new entries in the starting six.
WEAKNESSES:
Setting. Blocking is shaky. Let’s face it, they don’t have as much offense as compared to the other teams.
OPPORTUNITIES:
They’re solo 3rd and with a new system (which has been working so far), they can improve their win-loss record and maybe even beat one of the top two teams. Let’s see.
THREATS:
Peaking teams. Teams who almost defeated them in the 1st round. Teams who know how Coach Roger works his magic. Ateneo and La Salle.

La Salle (2nd, 6-1)

STRENGTHS:
Ara Galang, Ara Galang and Ara Galang. Coach Ramil. Blocking has always been their strength but serving really improved big time. Good bench players.
WEAKNESSES:
In a way, floor defense and a Marano-like leader. But they’re not as bad as compared to other teams. Predictable offense at times. Setter likes going to the wings.
OPPORTUNITIES:
They can use this 2nd round to improve their weaknesses and they can involve more players in their offense
THREATS:
Pressure to avenge, Pressure to stop a possible winning streak, Peaking teams or teams who are hungry for a Final Four berth. Ateneo.

Ateneo (1st, 7-0)

STRENGTHS:
Almost every skill. Alyssa Valdez. Denden Lazaro. Kiwi Ahomiro, Jia Morado. Bea De Leon. Ella De Jesus. Jho Maraguinot and Mich Morente. Happy, Unity and Heart Strong attitude.
WEAKNESSES:
Too much errors every game. Opposite position not as solid although not so much as a weakness. Blocking although not so much too based on their defensive patterns.
OPPORTUNITIES:
Lessen their errors, raise the level of play in the 2nd round
THREATS:
Pressure to maintain their winning streak. Peaking teams. La Salle.

Let’s hope the 2nd round will be even more exciting! Good Luck to all teams!

UAAP Volleyball Day 2 Individual Stats

Ateneo vs NU Game Analysis (December 1, 2013)

The score won’t tell it but I was actually amazed at the game. The game featured a lot of good spikes and rallies from both teams.

NU improved a lot in floor defense. They were receiving like hell, which I honestly didn’t expect at all honestly. They knew the best way for them to win is to utilize their middles or the Santiago sisters, and the only way to do this is to improve receiving. With decent receiving, you can do almost anything. You can even always set the balls to the middle (as what Ivy has been doing during the game). Believe me, in the coming games, NU will use this strategy to win games. I also had to commend NU’s Ivy Perez who improved a lot. A lot of people have been hard on her, even me at times, but she impressed me today. She was also able to minimize her errors, which is good since before she’d make like roughly 3-4 per set. Fatima General also had a spectacular game. People said that Jen Reyes is a big loss but this second year player is doing just fine. Her receiving is commendable, making it easier for Perez to set the balls. Well, nothing new with Urdas, Pablo, Santiago and Aganon delivering for NU. Everyone knows how fierce they are. But Jaja Santiago delivered well for NU. She is the future of Philippine volleyball. Her spiking reminds me so much of Thaisa Menezes of Brasil. Jaja has 5 more years. It would be fun to see her grow, improve her blocking and develop a running attack. Experience also prevailed for NU. They knew Ateneo had rookies so most of the time, they would serve and spike the ball at rookies like Gopico, Morente and Gequillana which is not bad at all because that’s how the game should be played; As much as possible take advantage of the weaknesses of the opponent. Job well done for NU.

Ateneo actually had a fair game. It wasn’t their best, but it wasn’t their worst too. They just had a lot of errors but you can see that they’ve got skills. Valdez was unexpectedly in her element today but provided some spunk and points. Morente, Gequillana and Gopico showed skills. Morente had very good court sense, reminds me so much of Angela Benting. Gequillana reminds me of a young Fille Cainglet. Gopico has very good quicks but, the problem is, since the team didn’t have much receiving, she didn’t have much sets. But you can see that she has the power and blocking. Among all the rookies, Julia Morado proved to be steady. She is just so good. Her setting reminds me of Rhea Dimaculangan or Jem Ferrer. She’s a rookie to watch out in the coming games. Also steady a while ago was Amy Ahomiro. She had good blocking and good serving. It’s sad that she was replaced right away since along with Alyssa, she has been producing quality points for the team. If you’re a diehard Ateneo fan, you don’t need to be sad. Sure they had a lot of errors, 27 to be exact, but the team showed a lot of potential. It will be fun to see this team in the coming games especially if they improve their communication, teamwork and confidence. You know that these girls have skills, it’s just a matter of getting enough confidence and removing the nerves in the games.

It was a fun game to watch. Both sides had their own sets of good hitters but championship experience and maturity won it for NU. Congrats to NU! Good game Ateneo!

UAAP Women’s Volleyball full 1st round schedule

Just got this schedule from my good friend and this year’s team captain of the Ateneo Lady Eagles Dzi Gervacio (of course with her permission)! Thank You Dzi and Good Luck!

Like I said, it’s gonna be one hell of an opening weekend! Might just be the best opening weekend in UAAP Volleyball in so many years I have been watching. All games could go up to 5 sets!

Good Luck to all teams and have a good season!