FEU’s Clarisse Loresco during a game against Ateneo in UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball.–UAAP PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Cla Loresco provided the spark off the bench to help Far Eastern University inch closer to clinching a Final Four berth in the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament.
Loresco only played in the last two sets but delivered seven points including three blocks, as FEU eliminated Ateneo from the Final Four race, 25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 25-13, on Wednesday at Philsports Arena.
The FEU High School product embraces the opportunity and trust given to her by coach Tina Salak.
READ: UAAP: FEU inches closer to Final Four, ousts Ateneo
Cla Loresco relishes the opportunity to be part of Alas Pilipinas’ 33-player wishlist.
Coach Tina Salak, a former national team star: Grab the opportunity.#UAAPSeason87 @INQUIRERSports pic.twitter.com/v9yhdfczqY
— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) April 9, 2025
“For me, what our coaches always tell us is that we need to have the desire to win and the eagerness to play. That’s something we need to carry with us every time,” said Loresco in Filipino.
“If you compare collegiate to high school, it’s really different. In collegiate, you can really feel the excitement every time you play. I always try to give my best in every game,” she added.
At the young age of 18, the rookie middle blocker was part of coach Jorge De Brito’s Alas Pilipinas’ 33-player wishlist for three international tournaments this year, including the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand.
Loresco’s focus is with FEU, believing her first collegiate stint will also help her prepare for the Alas tryouts.
“Knowing that I’m on the wishlist for Alas, I need to focus first on the UAAP and work on the things I still need to improve. I also need to prepare for the tryouts,” she said.
FEU coach Salak, a UAAP three-peat champion and part of the national team’s last SEA Games bronze medalist in 2005, urges Loresco to bet on herself, sharing the honor of representing the country coming from her past experiences as a Philippine squad setter and Army personnel.
READ: Part of Alas wishlist, NU core ‘ready for next step’
“My best advice to her is to grab the opportunity. Not everyone gets the chance to be lined up for the national team or even get an invitation. There are so many players hoping for that spot. As an athlete and as a coach, the best place you can go is the national team. You’re serving the country. I come from a military background, and it’s hard for me not to serve. Turning down the opportunity to serve your country isn’t easy,” said Salak.
“This is the opportunity given to you—take it. Whatever the problem or conflict may be, it will take time to solve. It’s not easy balancing being in the national team, the FEU program, and being a student-athlete. You will miss out on things, and you won’t always be with your teammates.”
Loresco is the lone FEU player from the wishlist which include other UAAP stars Bella Belen, Alyssa Solomon, Lams Lamina, Vange Alinsug, and Arah Panique of National University, La Salle’s Angel Canino, Shevana Laput, Em Provido, and Alleiah Malaluan, and Adamson rookie sensation Shaina Nitura.
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“At the end of the day, it’s your personal growth that matters. Once you fulfill that dream and contribute to the team, you’ll express your experiences from the national team with your teammates. Not everyone gets it, and if you miss it, that’s the end. It won’t come back,” Loresco added.
Right now, Loresco and the Lady Tamaraws continue their Final Four push against Adamson on Saturday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
