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UAAP volleyball: Hard work pays off for Ateneo rookie Jules Samonte

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/sports/04/08/jules-samonte-040817.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Ateneo rookie Jules Samonte (8) celebrates with her teammates after scoring against the De La Salle Lady Spikers. <cite>Richard Esguerra, ABS-CBN Sports.</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines — With star spiker Jho Maraguinot not playing to rest a nagging injury to her right knee, someone needed to step up for the Ateneo Lady Eagles in their second round showdown against the De La Salle Lady Spikers.That someone turned out to be rookie Jules Samonte, who played the best game of her brief collegiate career on the biggest stage possible.Samonte came off the bench to score 10 points in Ateneo&#x27;s 12-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-19 victory over the Lady Spikers, which gave them the No. 1 seed in the Final 4 of the UAAP Season 79 women&#x27;s volleyball tournament.For the little-used rookie, her output was a result of the hard work that she put in training, and proof that patience does pay off.&quot;I was really, really excited to play because I wasn&#x27;t able to play in the last game against La Salle,&quot; said Samonte, referring to their four-set win over the Lady Spikers in the first round of the tournament. &quot;So s&#x27;yempre, I wanted to experience the feeling of playing against them.&quot;Samonte did not start –- that honor went to Ponggay Gaston, who took Maraguinot&#x27;s position as one of Ateneo&#x27;s open hitters in the starting six. But Gaston, who usually plays the middle position, was repeatedly targeted on defense, both at the net and on the floor. Enter Samonte, who made an immediate impact.After a paltry output in the opening frame, the Lady Eagles found their rhythm, with setter Jia Morado making full use of all the weapons at her disposal. That included Samonte, whose sharp attacks often caught the Lady Spikers off guard.&quot;It really feels great, because it&#x27;s true naman po that we all work hard in training,&quot; said Samonte, who converted nine of her 17 attacks. &quot;We sweat, we super work our butts off. It&#x27;s nice to see how our progress is really working out.&quot;No one was prouder of Samonte than her &quot;older sisters&quot; on the team, who were all in amazement at how their rookie stepped up and gave them a huge lift exactly when they needed it.&quot;Sobrang proud of Jules,&quot; said Maraguinot. &quot;Funny kasi, nung magsa-start ang game, when I was giving her instructions, niyayakap niya ako tapos sabi niya, &#x27;Ate Jho, Ate Jho.&#x27; Sabi ko, relax lang. Kaya mo &#x27;yan. Makinig ka lang sa sasabihin ko, pero she delivered well, and I&#x27;m so proud of her.&quot;[When the game started, I was giving her instructions. I just told her to relax, that she can do it. She delivered well and I&#x27;m so proud of her.]According to Morado, they made a point of telling Samonte not to feel too pressured. &quot;Sinabihan namin siya na, &#x27;Jules, if coach uses you today, &#x27;wag ka matakot because you&#x27;re a rookie, nothing is expected of you but to play your 100%. Okay lang magkamali&#x27;,&quot; said Morado.&quot;She took that talaga to heart, and sobrang nagulat kami sa laro niya. Nag-deliver talaga siya,&quot; she added.[We told her, &#x27;Jules, if coaches uses you today, don&#x27;t be scared because you&#x27;re a rookie and nothing is expected of you. Just play your 100%, and it&#x27;s okay to make mistakes. She took that to heart, and she surprised us. She really delivered today.]For star middle hitter Bea de Leon, one play encapsulated Samonte&#x27;s performance. In the third set, Samonte found herself blocked by La Salle setter Kim Fajardo, but Morado gave her another chance and threw the ball her way again. This time around, Samonte was able to beat the La Salle blockers.&quot;That&#x27;s playing smart,&quot; said De Leon. &quot;She&#x27;s a natural. Sa training, she&#x27;s been doing well. We&#x27;ve always been waiting for her to get this break, and we&#x27;re very happy about it.&quot;Still, as proud as they were of Samonte, the rookie still did not get a break from her post-game duties. Samonte exited the Ateneo dugout dragging their team cooler behind her, though she only smiled when asked about her responsibilities as the lone rookie on the team.&quot;It&#x27;s just part of the rookie duties,&quot; she said. &quot;Everyone goes through it. It&#x27;s OK lang naman, because everyone helps din. I don&#x27;t really feel like a rookie, because even the seniors help me out with the stuff.&quot;(For more sports coverage, visit the ABS-CBN <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com" target="_blank">Sports website.</a>)

For the little-used rookie, Samonte's output was a result of the hard work that she put in training, and proof that patience does pay off.

For the little-used rookie, Samonte's output was a result of the hard work that she put in training, and proof that patience does pay off.

UAAP volleyball: Hard work pays off for Ateneo rookie Jules Samonte

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UAAP volleyball: Hard work pays off for Ateneo rookie Jules Samonte

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Apr 08, 2017 09:32 PM PHT

Read More:

UAAP volleyball

Ateneo Lady Eagles

La Salle Lady Spikers

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