Lyceum of the Philippines University head coach Cromwel Garcia has plenty of belief in Jaja Tulang as he has trusted her to play a complex role for the Lady Pirates in the NCAA Season 99 women's volleyball tournament.
Tulang, who switches from opposite hitter to middle blocker and back again depending on need, has embraced her critical role for LPU and has since the bubble season back in 2022.
"Actually original position ni Jaja ay middle then we planned na magkaroon kami ng malaking blocking sa opposite kaya nilagay namin siya doon. Hands down ako sa kanya, wala talaga ako masabi," Garcia told GMA News Online.
"Bubble pa lang, ready na siya doon."
[Actually, Jaja's original position is middle then we planned to have big blocking on the opposite so we placed her there. Hands down, there's nothing more to say about her... Since the bubble season, she's been ready for the role.]
And so far, Tulang has delivered in both positions.
In Season 98, Tulang dazzled in her original position and even won that year's 2nd Best Middle Blocker award after forming a one-two punch with her fellow blocker in Zonxie Dahab.
In this ongoing season, Garcia decided to bring Tulang back to opposite hitter after they brought in Heart Bio and Hiromi Osada, who both star in the middle despite being just rookies.
However, from time to time, the veteran mentor would put Tulang back in the middle blocker position, depending on the situation on the court.
Garcia is not the least bit surprised to see Tulang excel in both positions as the third-year ace continued to lead the charge for the Lady Pirates in their title hunt.
"Actually wala akong masasabing spectacular thing kasi sabi ko nga, kasama ko ‘yung bata sa training. And ayon talaga ‘yung expectations from her, ibibigay talaga niya ‘yung best niya lagi eh," Garcia added.
"I know it to myself kasi buong-buo ‘yung tiwala ko sa kanya and sa lahat ng players ko. Alam ko na kaya nilang baliktarin ‘yung mga situations dahil sa gusto nila."
[I don't really have a spectacular thing to say, because I'm with them in training. And that just what the expectations are for her, that she give her best all the time... I know it to myself. I have all the trust in the world in her and all of my players. I know they can reverse any situation because of how bad they want it.]
Tulang, who is currently the ninth best scorer in the league with 129 points, showed just that when she steered LPU to a 25-17, 24-26, 25-20, 25-19 victory over Arellano University in the first round of stepladder semifinals on Sunday.
Tulang is also the second best spiker behind Gayle Pascual of Benilde and is the 10th best server.
"Mostly hindi na [ako nagugulat sa ginagawa niya] kasi kumbaga tinrabaho naman niya eh. Nakita ko kung paano niya pinaghandaan ‘tong season na ‘to."
[Mostly I'm no longer surprised by what she can do because she's worked hard for it. I saw how she prepared for this season.]
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
