Just received in the mail, I know not everyone receives email from the Alumni Team.

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Ateneo de Manila University
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

14 October 2004

MEMO TO : THE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY
FROM : THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT : LADY EAGLES, THANK YOU FOR A GREAT SEASON!

ADMU LADY EAGLES

At the end of the mass at the Church of the Gesù last Saturday night after the heartbreaking loss of our Lady Eagles to Adamson in the third and final game of the championship, I read a text message, which Dr. Alran Bengzon had sent me. I believe it expresses the sentiment of the Ateneo de Manila community:

“The Lady Eagles did us proud by what they accomplished this year, including this final game -- sound fundamentals, high energy, great heart, and strong sense of team. They are models for all ADMU athletes, teams and coaches. Congratulations forever.”

Truly, to our Lady Eagles from the whole Ateneo Community, congratulations and thanks for a season to remember. The team finished number 2 during the season with a 9-3 record, losing once to FEU and twice to Adamson. They eliminated La Salle in the Final 4 playoffs. In the Finals series vs Adamson, we won game 1 by 3 points, lost by 1 point in game 2, and finally lost a very thrilling game 3 in OT by 3 points.

Right after the game, the team was in tears. When asked on Halikinu radio last Monday how she felt, Danica Caynap or “Dcay” said, “It was painful. The whole day I was stunned and I just couldn't believe that we just lost it.” But then “a lot of people were still so supportive of us and so we find the strength to go on. I guess it’s a good sign and that God has a lot more things in store for us, better things in store for us.” Pipay Villanueva, who scored a career high 26 points in the final game, expressed the same feelings in the interview, adding that the championship series “was a very nice experience because after so many years (17 to be exact), we finally got back to the finals.”

Coach John Flores expressed how moved he was by the sea of blue and white waiting for them as they left the dugout after the game. The university community appreciates very much how the team has improved and grown, from a 0-12 record five years ago to reaching the final 4 last year and the finals this year. This is the result of very hard work all year round practicing almost daily from 6am to 9am. Those who read Carolyn Tan-chi’s essay in the Philippine Daily Inquirer of July 14 know the exemplary discipline of our young women, balancing basketball, academics and their personal and spiritual life. This strong finish and their exemplary discipline should further boost Ateneo sports in general and women’s sports in particular.

Towards the end of the Halikinu interview, Dcay Caynap said something that I found both unusual and exemplary: “We’d like to congratulate the Adamson Lady Falcons. It was a very good series and we learned a lot from them.” This is a team that is already at a very high level and that continues to grow and to learn. We look forward with them to the next season and to our first ever championship in women’s basketball.

Our warmest thanks to Coach John Flores and the coaching staff, to Team Manager Treena Limjengco, to Justin and Marissa Adviento, to Mr. Jun-jun Capistrano, Mr. Ricky Palou, to the Team Captain Tin Chua and the Co-Captains Dcay Caynap and Pipay Villanueva and the whole team, and to the parents whose unconditional support for the team was their source of strength.

Mary, for you, for your white and blue.
We pray you’ll keep us, Mary, constantly true.
We pray you’ll keep us, Mary, faithful to you.

BIENVENIDO F. NEBRES, S.J.
President


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The ATENEO LADY EAGLES Women’s Basketball Team would like to thank the whole Ateneo community for its tremendous and overwhelming support. Special thanks to:

Coach John Flores and the coaching staff
Justin and Marissa Adviento
Jun-jun Capistrano
Ricky Palou
Vic Cabañero
Dr. Tito Chan
Fr. Ben Nebres, S.J.
Fr. Tito Caluag, S.J.
Fr. Rudy Fernandez, S.J.
Coaches Joe Lipa & Ricky Dandan
Coaches Sandy Arespacochaga & Jamike Jarin
Coach Chot Reyes
Mr. Jose M. Santos
Dr. Miren Gonzalez-Intal
Ms. Chita Rosales
Dr. George Canlas
Monchito Mossesgeld
Jun Dalandan
Team Manager Treena Limjengco

The Ateneo Alumni (Special mention to: Jimmy Alabanza, Vic Lim, Dennis Javier, Mon Murillo, Fred Sy, Class of HS 62, Joel Lopa, Bombit Silva, JM Silva)

Joseph Buduan
The parents of the Ateneo Lady Eagles
Erika Dy, Donna Reyes, Carla Laroza,Candy Tanchi and Batch 2001 who started it all
Noel Raya and Family
Ron Bebida and Family
JP Escudero
The Moro Lorenzo Staff
The University Athletics Staff


ADMU LADY EAGLES

18 Barracoso, Marie Anjelica C.
5 Caynap, Danica Regina G. Co - Captain
9 Chua, Kristine C. Team Captain
12 Grajales, Aileen A.
11 Herrera, Mara Kristina G.
4 Lee Villanueva, Stephanie L.S. Co - Captain
17 Leyco, Khristia Angela V.
6 Ngo, Cheryll B.
8 Quimpo, Katrina A.
10 Rapes, Ana Therese A.
14 Sy, Theresa T.
15 Tan, Ann Katherine A.
7 Tan-chi, Carolyn H.
13 Tioseco, Cassandra Noel G.

Head Coach: John Flores
Asst. Coaches: Haydee Ong
Ron Camara
Benjamin Sipin
Joey Mendoza



Thank you.

Jun Dalandan

We'll get 'em next season if not this summer already.

There's nothing like payback time to really set the tone for things to come, and we all know waht they say about payback ...

(Lady) Eagle Watching In Season 67

It was quite an eye-opener to a relative newcomer to Women's UAAP basketball. As a hoops junkie, I've never needed an excuse to watch a game, heck I even stop to watch pickup games in dinghy neighborhoods. There's just something unique about the sport of basketball, the creative expression, the hustle, the agression expressed as performance art. Admittedly I have never thought much of women's basketball after that great generation of Peachy Cheng, Mitch lazaro and Franny Severino finally came to pass. My faith was not renewed with the first game I ever watched of our lady Eagles during the finals of the FMC Summer Tournament.

My faith was renewed however in the first game of Season 67, as the Ladies trounced a game UST squad by 16 points. That game would set the tone for a 9-3 season where the Lady Eagles would fight tooth and nail in front of sparse crowds in the sweltering Adamson gym. I was still nursing a hangover during that game, having had my usual dipsomanic tryst the night before. I was even surprised to see Cackler and Little Cackler in tow, before my gin-addled mind remembered that Mrs. Cackler was working with the team. And it was the first time I unfurled my Cassy Tioseco streamer. That got one hell of a rise out of everybody as the Great Cassandra rolled to a double-double performance along with about a half-dozen blocks.

It wasn't a dream season to be sure. But after the calvary of going 1-35 or something to that effect over three seasons or so in Women's basketball during the Dark Ages, this was practically hoops Nirvana for the faithful of the Ladies in Blue and White. There were close wins, big wins, heartbreakers, lots of tears and sweat, even a bit of blood, but through it all I slowly came to realize: THIS is what basketball is really all about, small gym, small crowd, Sunday mornings, mostly parents and other loved ones making up a gallery barely a tithe of that in the Men's games.

But there they were: Katrina Quimpo putting on a point guard clinic, Cassy Tioseco dominating inside, Tin Chua's effective if unheralded muscle in the paint and on the press break, Pipay Villanueva's sniping, D-Cay running the wings, the wondrous Aileen Grajales on a one-woman fastbreak, Che Ngo laying out some tough love for opposing swingmen, Carolyn Tanchi breaking out against bitter rival Lasalle, Tere Sy and Macky Herrera giving second-unit frontlines fits, AJ Barracoso becoming the fifth straight Lady Eagle to win rookie of the year, Kring Leyco leading the cheering from the bench, Banans Rapes and Kathy Tan delighting their teammates with quality minutes. All under the tough but patient guidance of one of the most underrated coaches in the league, John Flores.

This was no Sunday league. This is the real deal. This is where playing with pride and being there for each other matter the most, when your teammates take it in stride even when you shove them into place oncourt or yell at them on the bench during huddles.

As for myself, well, I was usually up on my favorite perch in the gym mezzanine, just grateful to see my beloved game still hasn't been totally overtaken by endorsements, media partners, politicking, bickering, and everything else that has demeaned the very sport itself.

For all of this and for fighting for the Blue and White with the pride and honor expected of all Ateneans I thank you, Lady Eagles.

MABUHAY KAYONG LAHAT AT MAGKIKITA PA TAYO SA SEASON 68!

On seocnd thought why wait for Season 68? See y'all at the Summer FMC!

From the bottom of our hearts we'd like to thank all of the Lady Eagles who were able to make it to our little Mas-mas Party last weekend:

PIPAY VILLANUEVA
TIN CHUA
ANA RAPES
KATHY TAN
CAROLYN TANCHI
KRING LEYCO
CHE NGO

It is so refreshing seeing our Ladies let their hair down and just chillin' after all the action they saw during the Season. We hope to see even more of you in future gatherings.

Special thanks to Coach JOHN FLORES also for coming to the party. All the guys had a great time with all of the war stories, especially my Homeys.

So, when we gonna kick butt in the H & A?

Congratulations Lady Eagles!

They posted their first win at the Home and Away League against the FEU Lady Tams! Beating them 71-60!

I got the info from Carrot who is still at FEU along with several regulars, cheering for our boys naman... men pala. sorry.

Sayang, i wasn't able to go... sino ba kasi nag-imbento ng trabaho? hehe. kidding! I love work kaya!

Keep it up girls! Hopefully, i could watch one game before i leave.

does anyone here have a eyewitness account for the FEU game?

i just heard that Pipay shot the lights out of the FEU gym... what else happened?

Go Lady Eagles! One Big Fight!
+AMDG

BETK, i heard the game was called off prematurely because, well, pipay shot the lights out in the FEU gym. madilim tuloy.

Cubao,
hahaha!

"Young men" na lang para pareho tayong tama

Sorry I don't have much to say about the game. For what it's worth, I recall joescoundrel saying that our Lady Eagles executed their plays the same way they did them in practice, which I guess is a sign that they didn't lose their cool and moved quickly enough so that the Lady Tams couldn't counter in time. There were some errors, I think, but our team played good defense and yes, Pipay did shoot very well.

According to Mother Goose's latest post in the Home & Away thread, the next Lady Eagles' game is against UST. It will be held this Saturday, Jan 15, 2 pm at the Loyola Gym/BEG. Hope you can catch that one with us!

Good luck to the Lady Eagles! One Big Fight!

Survey: For the Men(Just for fun)

Sino sa ADMU Women's Basketball Team ang crush nyo?

ako yung coach

To the Ladies: Sino sa ADU Lady Falcons ang crush niyo?

Si Dulce Bombeo! Hampogeeee!

i just hope kring leyco is all right after her nasty head injury in their game vs UST last saturday--which the lady eagles won.

all the best.

Kring, i hope you're ok...

And Yup, the girls won over the Lady Growling Tigers 73-68... they led as high as 28 (i wasn't able to check the score regularly but that's the highest margin that i observed).

the members of the training pool (newbies) were tested in the fourth as the lady tigers put on the press to create a 17-2 run... but UST came up short.

The game was highly physical especially when it was nearing the end. Man, those refs must have been in a rush to go home, coz very few fouls were called... It was literally a hard fought game for the lady eagles as Tin even incurred a gash in her knee in the early goings...

Keep it up Ladies!

Go Lady Eagles! One Big Fight!

I was glad to see that Kring wasn't having trouble moving her limbs or communicating with her teammates after that nasty (and accidental) collision with the UST player.

Get well soon, Kring!

Kring should be out of UST today.

All tests had to be made just to make sure. Kasinlaki kasi ng siopao (jumbo) and bukol.

All thanks to Dr. Chan.

Yeah, the calls were bad.

The Pretzel or Winchels girl is a guest player from Germany, not U.S. She still needs a lot of polish but she runs like a turbo diesel Benz.

am glad she'll be alright, cackler.

i remember when i had a concussion and had to stay in the hospital for about the same amount of time as kring. it's in such instances that you'd be overjoyed to hear someone tell you, "there's nothing in your head, you can go home now."

Cackler,

Pretzel?? Haha!

You're right, she needs alot of polishing but she has a lot of heart and determination... she has the right attitude. (at least that's what i saw last saturday)

And she knows how to have fun.

Right after she scores on the fastbreak, she runs down on defense, looks at the bench, sticks out her tongue (belat!) looking at her team mates who were egging her on.

Si Coach John lang ang hindi natawa. Iniisip niya kasi kung paano niya mumurahin eh hindi naman nakakaintindi ng Tagalog.

Pipay, as usual, blew me away with her 3-pt shooting. That girl is awesome. Dcay also had her share of great shots. Akala ko nga nung warm up wala sa kundisyon. Saving it all up for the game lang pala. (Joke lang Dcay! )

Haha! Naku, Coach John might have to learn how to speak in Deutsche!

PFC,
haha! sabi ko sayo, she was saving her strength for the game... kaw kasi e!

and yes, pipay shot at least four trifectas during the game! maybe more... i lost count.

here's a dispatch from joescoundrel on the latest from our lady eagles:

Our Lady Eagles are competing in the National Intercollegiate Basketball tournament featuring teams from all over the country. It seems all of the games
will be played in the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, same venue as the Shakey's V-League. If for nothing else its as good a time as any to check out tall, fit,
long-limbed women huffing, puffing and sweating. And hey, quite a few of them are actually gorgeous, even the, uh, present anatomical females.

Moving on, our Ladies are now at 1-1 in the Intercoll, besting Philippine College of Criminology (PCCr) last Friday 53-44 after blowing a 17-point lead, then losing by a whisker 49-47 to Philippine Maritime Institute (PMI).

By way of a little backgrounder: PCCr is that same school that sent its fighting Crimebusters varsity to an astounding 0-5 record in the recent FIBA-Stankovic Cup where they managed to uphold Philippine basketball pride by not letting the opposition erect more than a 60-point lead in any game. PCCr is located somewhere along Taft in the great City of Manila and is the school of choice for those wishing to serve in our gallant PNP or NBI. PCCr is a NCRAA and SCUAA regular. (Don't ask...)

PMI is a proud producer of the country's greatest export: Seafarers! Those who take local cruises would've probably had a ship captain who came from PMI. Those who've taken international cruises would've probably had First Mates, Engineers or even Stewards servicing their Liner. PMI is also one of the favorite locations for Fellowship activities between the two most revered socio-civic action groups in the
Metropolis, the Tau Gamma Phi Fraternity and the Samahang Ilocano (S.I.) PMI's varsity is nicknamed the Admirals.

Against PCCr, our Ladies played solid first-half ball, only to suddenly forget their press break pattern in the second half, apart from also forgetting that
proper spacing does not include overloading on the strong side. Needless to say it was a rusty game for them. Pipay Villanueva's shooting however kept the
Lady Crimebusters at bay.

PMI was a totally different story, well, almost. Again our Ladies played a solid first half, taking as much as a 14-point lead, the biggest of the game. Then something, or rather someONE, took over in the second half for the Lady Admirals, their Number 4, De Guzman.

Ms. De Guzman - and this is no exaggeration at least where that game was concerned - made like LA Tenorio and practically won the game by herself for PMI. Ms. De Guzman picked apart our defense practically driving in or shooting at will even in the face of our vaunted trapping. Our two bigs - Cassy and AJ - were off,
missing many pointblack attempts against opponents at least four or five inches shorter than they.

Again, it was the shooting of Pipay and Katrina Quimpo that kept us in the game. Katrina however was not her usual self; I counted at least eight turnovers on her in the second half alone. PMI was pretty easy pickings were it not for Ms. De Guzman. Our overall defense still held, forcing five shotclock expirations in the last
three minutes, but it was that sputtering offense that killed us. We had at least six tries to get within one point, tie it up, or take a one-point lead in the last minute-and a-half, but our bigs uncharacteristically bungled layup after unmolested layup.

PS There's an H & A game vs the UE Amazons, 2pm, Saturday 29 January 2005, Loyola Center.

ei, i don't get it... magkasunod yung games nila in one day? that's crazy! any team would be bound to get tired come the 2nd game...

i'm proud of the team for having fought well despite the fatigue! (...and other concerns like academics, considering they have classes the following day!)

man, these girls are definitely hardcore!

Go Lady Eagles! One Big Fight!

+AMDG

BETK, baka nagka-baligtad lang yung scheduling ng men's and women's games on Saturday. The men's game against UE is also scheduled for Saturday, remember?

EDITED BECAUSE: I forgot to say - good luck, Lady Eagles!

Hi rin nga pala kay Kring. Nakita namin siyang nagla-laps sa Loyola Gym kagabi. Hindi ko lang nga makausap kasi tumatakbo - baka mabigla at mapaano na naman siya

Carrot: i was referring to their two games for the National Intercoll (against PCCr and PMI)... same day ba yun? or different dates?

Go Lady Eagles! One Big Fight!

Oh. I'm not sure but it sounded naman like they were held on different dates. I know our girls are good, but it is a bit much to expect them to play twice in a day!

Good luck to the Lady Eagles!

You can see it in the way they've developed over the last year and a half, how the footwork improved, the bodies became stronger, the steps became quicker, the leap took more spring. You can see the way they are able to pass or dribble their way out of traps, out of pressure, out of spots that used to be a sure turnover waiting to happen. Its called skills development, and the Lady Eagles have been going through a lot of it since before the last UAAP season began, in the summer of 2004.

Pipay Villanueva now has better ballhandling to complement her already sweet shooting. Tin Chua has become even more unstoppable as a post player thanks to some nifty new footwork. Katrina Quimpo has added legit ball-protection skills, making her dope ballhandling even harder to contain. Danica Caynap has become one of the best two-way guards in the league. Cassandra Tioseco has become a more efficient center even against bangers 20 pounds heftier. The rest of the Ladies have also shown remarkable improvement across the board, now able to put on a suffocating trap of their own against teams that used to rub their hands with glee throwing traps at them. Every one of the Ladies can hurt you from the perimeter, can drive with either hand, can rebound, can advacne the ball against pressure.

Its called skills development. It takes dedication and patience to learn, and it takes even more to teach. Its not any guy who can just come in from the stands or off the streets and impart this kind of knowledge. The really good teachers have to understand their students in order to make learning mroe effective. Any schmuck who thinks he can just come right into the middle of off-season training and start telling players what to do is seriously deluded. It takes years of experience, jotting down notes, making sense of them at home or in the office, attending and then giving seminars, learning with all your heart so that you can teach with all your heart as well.

To the fine men and women who make up the coaching staff of the Lady Eagles, you guys never hear it enough. So here's something from one of the guys in the stands: Keep up the good work. The Women's Basketball program lived through something like a 1-35 abyss over three-odd seasons not so long ago. As much as we honor all of the great student-athletes who now make up the most kick-ass women's basketball varsity in the land, all of you guys who do the scouting, recruiting, teaching and nurturing, away from the limelight, desrve major-major props.

To all of you: Cheers!

hats off to the splendid turnaround job by the lady eagles coaching staff led by head coach john flores and his group of topnotch assistants. former lady eagles who have moved on to greater things will attest to the rising level of excellence the lady eagles have steadily reached over the years--culminating with their first-ever UAAP finals in 2004--and they credit this to the scientific and battle-tested approach of coach john.

like joescoundrel earlier said, it is rare to find coaches who are as equally adept in game planning as well as in individual skills development. we have one in coach john, and it seems the biggest challenge he will continue to face is the one he brings to himself as the man at the helm of a program on the rise. i'm almost certain his worst critic is his own self, and a person of high standards such as himself will drive his team to higher and higher heights because he hates to disappoint himself. i'm confident the team will soon capture that elusive UAAP trophy under his watch.

congratulations, coach john, for investing your most precious time, effort, and dedication in turning the women's basketball program one of the most inspiring success stories in ateneo sports.

May fanboy na si Coach John...

Now that Macky Herrera is officially gone (natanggap lang naman sa scholarship sa Georgetown) we really need to have another big 4/5 to be at least an extra big body to round out our bigs rotation. As much work and as talented as Cassandra and AJ have gotten we need another big body to relieve them for whatever contingencies, especially foul trouble. This has become all the more imperative with the graduation of Tere Sy, who used to play the 5/4 slot. Our 4 and 5 rotation now is basically Cassandra, AJ and Tin Chua, with Kring seeing some action at the 4.

The coaching staff may also want to look into elevating Kath Tario to the Lady Eagles. Kath needs some focused coaching to develop her individual skills, but she has the big body and the bigman mentality to hold her own in the paint, grab rebounds and even block a few shots here and there. I know this girl is almost as raw as sushi hoops wise, but at least she's already adjusted to the Ateneo academic life and she's been on Team B, meaning she's not a total stranger to Ateneo basketball. Unless we get an immediate impact player to man that frontline spot, or provide an all around all-star quality game (think Merenciana Arayi) then Kath tario deserves a good, hard second look.

I think Ms. Tario would rather be called Kathy or better yet, Tars. I heard she has acquired the latter nickname because there are too many Kathys and Kats in Ateneo Women's Bball both in Teams A and B.

Joe and Cackler,

How raw is the sister of Japeth? She has the requisite height but not the width to play the 4/5. Sayang, the other big person will not be available until next year (?) pa.

Congrats to Macky Herrera. The 40K a year scholarship is nothing to sneeze at. Following in the footsteps of another Assumptionista perhaps, GMA also attended Georgetown for undergrad. She may even play for the varsity team, talunan sila compared to BC, Notre Dame, or newcomers to the league Marquette and De Paul.

Horse,

We do not actually have any word on Japeth's sister. Suffice it to say she at least has enough skill to be a serviceable big body (or long body anyway). She'll need not only dedicated coaching to hone her skills but also, I feel, a surrogate and a buddy to help with her adjustment to Ateneo academics and the Ateneo community in general.

BlueEagle,

As much of an equal-opportunity guy as I am, I cannot quite bring myself to call Kath Tario "Tars"; it seems so, uh, macho. Kulang na lang mag-swing siya from vine to vine, and I don't think Daddy and Mommy Tario would approve.

Still, she really does deserve a good second look from the coaches. She's got about the same body type and bigman mentality as Tere Sy, a perfect enough replacement if ever there was one.

Congratulations to the Lady Eagles for soundly thumping the CSB Lady Blazers by 22, and even erecting as much as a 35-point lead, they offered some serious payback to the shafting our Men's team got. Sabi ko na basta sundin lang ang diskarte ng coach yakang-yakang manalo bigtime.

Our next assignment (no sched yet though, tentative is this Thursday 17 February '05 at Rizal Memorial) are archnemesis Adamson, along with the dreaded (in more ways than one...) duo of Tess Gadian and Mercy Arayi in the National Intercollegiate Tournament.

Here is where I believe we will need to get a few of our Team B Ladies, because a 10-man lineup won't cut it against the Lady Falcons, especially without veterans Carolyn Tanchi (injury) and Tere Sy (graduation). And not to disparage our backcourt girls, but we seriously need big bodies to throw against the big and athletic Adamson frontline. Kath Tario plus maybe Krissy Tiu should be able to help, put in maybe five good quality minutes of relief.

AJ Barracoso please get well soon, lots of fluids, ascorbic acid and paracetamol should do you a world of good, and some light stretching to relieve stiffness.

It was a frustrating loss for the Ladies yesterday as they played shorthanded against the Lyceum Lady Pirates, 67-65 without steady power forward Tin Chua and the recuperating Carolyn Tanchi.

Our Ladies actually had a 61-50 lead early in the fourth quarter but Lyceum put on a terrific press that enabled them to overtake us 62-61 on the heads-up play of their Reyes and Ortencio. Our two bigs Cassandra and AJ had great games and were lording over their smaller counterparts early on, but reminiscent of their loss to the PMI Lady Admirals, Lyceum tightened up on defense and got out on the break to pull out a tough win.

Cassandra had a double-double by my reckoning, at least 13 poitns and 11 boards along with about four blocks, but the swarming Lyceum defense kept our shooters at bay.

Still, considering Lyceum is the factory for the RP Women's Team in basketball, and the fact that they're the NCRAA defending champions, we still did pretty good. True, we could've had that game, and as usual there were a few non-calls that stymied our momentum even as Lyceum got going. But we still put a galactical scare on a veteran-laden champion team.

This just in: Lady Eagles outlast Adamson to enter the Finals of the National Intercollegiate Tournament at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum. Scores and game summaries to follow in a bit. But how about that, we best the UAAP Women's champs?

Some notes to put the win in perspective:

The Team only had a days rest. Watching the tapes of the Adamson Lady Falcons, the Volunteer Coach commented:"Parang lalaki maglaro. Each Adamson player is equivalent to two."

During the run when the Lady Eagles were leading by 18 points: "Nakakapanindig balahibo!"

AJ Barracoso "was in the zone." Pipay scored 20 points. Cassy was great, as usual. Everybody played well. Great game. Guwapo ang Coach.

Gwapo coach ng Adamson pare?

Joe: OO nga. Guwapo din siya.

On another note:

Since our Men's Team for Season 68 shall, for all intents and purposes, have a twin tower combination, the Coaching Staff should take a very close look at what the Lady Eagles are doing with Cassy Tioseco and AJ Barracoso.

Better yet, the Mens Team can learn a thing or two from the way the Lady Eagles break the press, bring down the ball, establish their picks, seal their opponents, and play in then out of the paint. The bone crushing picks, half court and baseline traps and stay-with-your-man in-your-face defense is also a marvel to look at. No wonder the Volunteer Coach exclaimed: "Nakakapanindig balahibo!" The Lady Eagles can play tough basketball and still be Ladies.

But in observing the Lady Eagles play, one should never overlook the preparations that went into developing the players individually and as a Team. While Pipay was a star in High School, she had a lot to learn as a Collegiate Rookie playing against members of the National Team. She has now blossomed into a shooter whose three point shooting skills are surpassed only by Larry Fonacier. Dcay was not supposed to play the point yet here she is now bringing the ball down with confidence and precision. The leadership of Tin Chua has also surfaced to inspire her team mates. The positioning of both arms and legs has made Che Ngo a feared defender. AJ Barracoso should really sub for Martin Quimson in the Mens Team and Cassy can teach Japeth how to fish for the foul even without faking. Kat is simply superb and super.

And they still manage to wear a skirt.

Then again, maybe the better idea would be to simply replace the Coach of the Men's Team with the Coach of the Lady Eagles.

Kapag nangyari ang replacement na sapantaha mo pare sino ng magco-coach sa mga Ladies? Pwede sana si Cubao Fleahouse kung hindi lang sana...

Thanks Mother for texting me the results! It made my day!

Here's a short article from Manila Bulletin, Friday, Feb. 18 2005:

Ateneo lady dribblers in finals

ATENEO DE Manila University learned on the late-game heroics of Stephanie Villanueva to back out a 62-56 victory over defending UAAP champion Adamson University yesterday to clinch the first finals berth in the NCR eliminations for the 59th National Students Basketball Championship at Rizal Colliseum in Manila. Villanueva canned in four straight free throws in the final 14 seconds to repulse the Lady Falcons, who stormed back from an 18-point deficit in the third quarter. The Ateneo skipper finished with 20 points, ten each in the first and second half, to lead the Lady Eagles to their third win in four games. Ateneo will clash with the winner of the semifinal game between Rizal Technological University and Philippine Maritime Institute scheduled for 12 noon today, for the right to represent the National Capital Region in the women's division in the national finals in Dumaguete City, slated on February 27 to March 5.


Congratulations Lady Eagles! Keep it up! One Big Fight!

+AMDG

the view that women's basketball is more "pure" these days is becoming more and more common. many people believe that the athleticism of the NBA has reached such a level that players are relying on muscle and individualistic play, with the usual focus being on one or two "stars" and a cast of supporting players. it's ugly to watch.

in the women's game, where the players remain of modest size and strength, the emphasis is still on skill and teamwork. it's the old five-man game you used to see when people were smaller and couldn't dunk all the time. it's all ball movement and weaves and cuts and wide-open scoring. a purist's delight to watch.

There is a thread in Teamateneo.net about the lady eagles. According to Caveman, the lady eagles won their game against PMI by 6 points. They are the NCR champions and will play in Dumaguete against the provincial teams.

Good luck ladies!

Congratulations, Lady Eagles, and best of luck in Dumaguete!

You are right Joe:

Pipay Villanueva does remind us of a modern day Mona Lisa.

It is really the smile. And it was so good to see her smile when they beat the Adamson Falcons and unseated PMI as the defending Champions of the National Intercollegiate Basketball League, NCR Division.

This is the first ever title of the Lady Eagles. It was sweetly and quietly received in abandoned halls of Rizal Coliseum.

Now they are set to go to Dumaguete and fight for the National Title.

They don't get the limelight. But they are fighting for it in their very quiet way. You have seen how hard they practice and how they treat each game with pride and moxie. You also know that they hardly get support. Heck, even the Coaches are on a "volunteer" basis because they have not been paid. But they plod on and they study hard. Ladies in a man's world showing us the way.

Now they need our help. They are trying to raise funds even just for the plane ticket to Dumaguete. Mag papaampon na lang sila pagdating doon para may matulugan. Ganoon kalala.

They need our help now.

We need to bring back that Mona Lisa smile in Pipay.

Thank you to canmaker, alberto aguilera, joescoundrel, gee and ot_of_the_blue for the early response.

Gee:

Every little amount goes a long way. And we are assured it goes directly to the Ladies and specifically for the Dumaguete trip.

Our Lady Eagles need some extra lift in their wings to get to Dumaguete. Let's see if we can't put something together for the Distaff Fighting Blue and White.