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'The Ateneo connection': Faith Nisperos' dream teammate? Alyssa Valdez, of course

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Photos from PVL Media Bureau" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/12/23/20231223-pvl-media-bureau.jpg"/><figcaption>Faith Nisperos and Alyssa Valdez. Photos from PVL Media Bureau</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA – In an episode of &quot;Aces&quot; on the Pilipinas Live app released Saturday, Akari Charger Faith Nisperos revealed her dream teammate in a volleyball team.Her answer was obvious, at least according to her: Alyssa Valdez, a stalwart from the Ateneo de Manila University who also plays for Creamline in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) and won the All-Filipino title earlier this month.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/12/17/23/clutch-queen-alyssa-valdez-once-again-lives-up-to-her-moniker">&#x27;Clutch queen&#x27; Alyssa Valdez once again lives up to her moniker</a></li></ul>Akari ended up in seventh place in the same PVL conference.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/12/16/23/creamline-asserts-mastery-of-choco-mucho-to-claim-all-filipino-crown">Sheer dominance: Creamline asserts mastery of Choco Mucho to claim all-Filipino crown</a></li></ul>Valdez asked the question to Nisperos in the &quot;Aces&quot; episode: &quot;If you have a dream teammate, who would that be?&quot; raised Valdez.&quot;That would be you, of course (referring to Alyssa Valdez). Iba pa rin someone na I idolize, someone I look up to, to be actually on the same court lalo na representing the country. That would be one dream come true,&quot; Nisperos answered.Nisperos also said Valdez inspired her to &quot;go big&quot; in volleyball.&quot;You&#x27;re one of the first people na inspired me na actually to go big and to play in UAAP,&quot; Nisperos said as she offered her first Ateneo jersey to Valdez. &quot;So this one, I credit talaga for you.&quot;&quot;Thank you, thank you again for choosing the Ateneo way,&quot; Valdez responded.In the same episode, Nisperos also revealed why Ateneo was her dream university in college.&quot;Well, it was always at the back of my head na Ateneo &#x27;yung dream school ko. First, roots eh, doon ako nanggaling. My values, my core, natutunan ko sa Ateneo,&quot; she said.Raised in Davao City, Nisperos went to Ateneo de Davao University for her elementary education.&quot;What really made me choose to go there is my dream na I want to have a degree from Ateneo de Manila (University), and of course, bonus na &#x27;yung makakalaro pa ako under that name,&quot; Nisperos added.Both were from the Ateneo volleyball program – Valdez played for the Blue Eagles in UAAP Seasons 74-78, while Nisperos donned the jersey in Seasons 82, and 84-85.Valdez was UAAP&#x27;s four-time Best Scorer, three-time Best Server, three-time Season MVP, and one-time Finals MVP.Ateneo won two Shakey&#x27;s V-League championships and two UAAP volleyball championships with Valdez.Asked about her leadership role in the nest, Nisperos said she was &quot;forced to grow up&quot; since they were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.Nisperos&#x27; rookie campaign in Season 82 was cut short by the pandemic, and UAAP volleyball only returned in 2022 where Nisperos and the Blue Eagles made the Final 4.&quot;Wow, from rookie to senior, ready ba ako? Kasi parang wala akong naging guide on how to do this. I was forced to grow up talaga, to lead. I just have to show what I can, do the performance I can, kasi that&#x27;s how I got there naman eh, I just played my game,&quot; Nisperos said.&quot;Well, all my life kasi parang &#x27;yun nga &#x27;yung laging nafi-feed sa akin. I guess the way I handled it was acknowledging na may binigay si Lord sa akin na skills, gift na worth being sharing. And since there&#x27;re already eyes on me, why not showcase what God gave me, diba?&quot;Nisperos, meanwhile, ended her stint with Ateneo in Season 85 after foregoing her final year of eligibility. The Blue Eagles also won a bronze medal with her during Season 84.<div>RELATED VIDEO: </div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y8bdFP4DCLQ?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>