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Lance de Castro delivers on his one final goal for the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
Lance de Castro was at a crossroads as he approached his final year with the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
Though he was committed to bringing Ateneo back to the Final Four, the prospect of turning professional also sounded appealing, with one team presenting a solid offer shortly before the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Volleyball Tournament.
Ultimately, passion won over practicality for the libero — one that proved to be a blessing in disguise in the long run.
“My heart belongs to Ateneo talaga. It’s really that reason; I really don’t want to leave Ateneo without getting into the Final Four, and at best, get the championship,” de Castro reflected.
“And I feel like it’s all a blessing in disguise, kasi supposedly, the team that I was supposed to join [something happened to them], and then I knew it right before the season started.”
True enough, de Castro’s decision paid off greatly. After a string of fifth-place finishes, the Blue Eagles finally ended their Final Four drought in Season 88, finishing with a 7-7 record in eliminations to secure a ticket back to the postseason.
The Blue Eagles weren’t slouches either. Playing in their first Final Four game since Season 81 (2019), the Katipunan-based spikers came close to upsetting the FEU Tamaraws in a 23-25, 25-20, 25-16, 17-25, 12-15 thriller on Wednesday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Heartbreaking as it was, De Castro bowed out knowing that he and Ateneo gave it their all against the Tamaraws.
“Honestly, coming into this match, yesterday after the training, we didn’t think that we’re not going to have training tomorrow. It was a mindset for us that we’re still going to have training tomorrow, because in our minds, in our hearts, in our bodies, we know that we’ll win today,” said de Castro who finished with six digs and 20 receptions against the Tamaraws.
“But yeah, it happens. One team loses, one team wins. I guess FEU just wanted it more probably,” he continued. “But we can’t deny the fact that the Ateneo Blue Eagles gave it our all and we really wanted it…marami kaming pinaghuhugutan and that’s siguro ‘yung mga backstory namin coming into this game.”
Now that he’s fulfilled his goal with the Blue Eagles, de Castro plans to step back from volleyball, with plans to explore other ventures off the court. Still, that’s not to say that he’s leaving the sport completely.
“I hate to break it, but for me I’ll probably rest from volleyball and I have my other plans naman, other fields and other industries I want to explore,” de Castro, a one-time Best Libero, shared.
“I really want to finish my Masters in Business Administration and graduate, so that’s really my focus right now after the UAAP. After that, probably, if a team or mag-boom pa lalo ‘yung professional, I’m not really closing my doors on [playing volleyball].”
Only one thing is certain, and that’s Lance de Castro carrying a piece of Ateneo wherever he goes next.
“It’s really a blessing in disguise [to play my final year]. I followed my heart, and my heart really always and always will choose Ateneo.”
Images courtesy of the UAAP Media Bureau.