In Belen’s last dance, clear steps to title defense
As the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament unfolds, all eyes are on defending champion National University (NU).
In Bella Belen’s final year leading the Lady Bulldogs, she has a clear vision for their title defense, aiming for a goal they fell short of achieving in past seasons.
“The expectations of others will always be there. People will always have something to say, whether we play well or not,” said the charismatic Belen in Filipino on Thursday after the league’s press conference at Mall of Asia Arena.
“I tell my team that we know each other best—how we play and how we perform—so we’ll just ignore outside opinions. Those people aren’t with us in training or in the dorms where we put in the hard work,” added the reigning MVP.
NU suffered just two losses in the Season 86 elimination round, but after earning a twice-to-beat advantage, the Lady Bulldogs were stunned by Far Eastern University in Game 1 of the semifinals.
They redeemed themselves by sweeping University of Santo Tomas in two games to reclaim the title.
NU ended a 65-year championship drought in Season 84 by defeating La Salle in the Finals. The following season, the Lady Spikers dethroned the Lady Bulldogs, halting their bid for back-to-back titles.
Belen is determined to avoid a repeat of that outcome, especially with NU’s championship core still intact.
“I’m really excited to play because this is my final year with NU. Of course, we want to win back-to-back titles since we couldn’t do it in Season 85,” Belen said. “The team’s mindset is different now. Defending a championship is harder than winning it.”
“We’ve told ourselves we need to be ready for challenges from other teams, as well as those we’ll face within our own squad,” she added. “I’m excited to see what we can achieve, especially with a new system and a new coach.”
Sherwin Meneses, the architect behind the country’s most successful pro club team, Creamline, is now NU’s third head coach in four years, succeeding Norman Miguel.
“Let’s see how NU’s campaign goes. As defending champions, everyone will want to beat us. The pressure is always there, but we’ll fight through it. I trust this NU team,” Meneses said in Filipino in a separate interview.
“Coach Sherwin brings a lot of experience—he’s a champion coach, after all,” Belen said. “What we’ve learned from him is that he makes playing volleyball even simpler. We already thought it was easy, but now we see it can be even more straightforward. That simplicity is what will help us achieve our goals.”
