Akari’ prized recruit Faith Nisperos was held to a dismal five-point and six-dig outing in the Chargers’ first game loss against the PLDT High-Speed Hitters in the 2023 PVL Invitational Conference last July 1.
Surely, no one felt more disappointed on her performance than herself; so she want back to the drawing board and trained hard to put on a better show for the fans.
In the next game, Nisperos did not let everybody down as she showcased what she is truly made of. The UAAP Season 84 Second Best Outside Hitter tallied 15 points, 11 excellent receptions, and seven digs versus the Chery Tiggo Crossovers last Tuesday.
For the 5-foot-11 Charger, it took more than practicing her skills to pull off an excellent bounce-back outing performance. She had to shake off doubt because she knew her capabilities.
“Coming into this game, sinabi ko naman sa sarili ko na I have to be confident so it’s more of a mindset na kailangan kong gawin and preparation was important as well,” Nisperos said.
She also noted that the VNL break helped her and the team before their return to the volleyball hardwood. There was ample time to assess themselves and the Crossovers in practice and to erase the frustration from the opening game defeat.
“10 days yung pagitan ng games namin so what was good about it naman was we had the time to study ourselves, study our opponents and it was good naman. I was very confident going into this game kasi pinag-aralan namin eh,” she said.
Akari did play better and impressed the volleyball community come their next game, forcing the Chery Tiggo to five hard-fought sets. Unfortunately, they ran out of gas.
There is no question about the Chargers’ skills. Everyone knows what they can do, but being a young team, the mental toughness during intense moments of the game will come to bite them at times — and the last match is an example of this.
“It’s a battle of guts. Going into the fifth set, of course, kailangan all out na eh and my thoughts on the game was we made mistakes na wala sa timing so I guess it’s more of a maturity as a team kasi mga crucial moments is what makes us grow and as you could see we could learn and grow from this,” she said.
Good news for Akari: Even with the chances of entering the second round of eliminations looking dimmer, they still have time to figure things out according to Nisperos. Chemistry is not built overnight, but the pieces will all come together sooner than later.
“We’re essentially a new formed team kasi nga me going into the team, of course marami pa kailangan gawin to gel and this is only our second game in the PVL as a team na kami yung core diba? The fact na napush namin to five sets means kaya namin so slowly we’re getting there,” the fomer Lady Eagle stated.
Heading into Saturday’s game, Nisperos guaranteed that although she had a solid game against the Crossovers, she won’t stop working hard in training to get better.
“Siyempre there is always room for improvement and yun naman talaga sinasabi ko sa sarili ko. Everyday in training there’s a conscious effort naman to improve, to move forward kahit one step lang. I can say naman na those improvements na ginawa ko, it showed this game but of course the progress tuloy-tuloy pa din,” she assured.
In wins and losses, Akari’s fans will always have faith in Nisperos and the rest of the Chargers. The journey won’t be easy, but with the former Ateneo standout leading the charge, the team will eventually reach their goal, one step at a time.
