It has been almost a decade since we last saw the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws in the finals of the UAAP. despite being the winning-est team in the league the core of the Lady Tamaraws went down after they lost to the De La Salle Lady Spikers in Season 71 and after the Queen Tamaraw Rachel Anne Daquis left due to graduation leaving the thrown vacant.
The absence of a leader inside the team was greatly felt in season 72, after Maica Morada left the team leaving the team on the hands of younger players like Shaira Gonzales, April Jose, and Cherry Mae Vivas. In season 72, Cherry Mae Vivas was named as the Season's Most Valuable Player but the valiant efforts of Vivas only produced FEU a 6-8 record finishing at #5 that is their worst record for decades.
In season 73, FEU surprised the Volleyball Community after they revamped their line up, removing almost all of the players in the roster of Season 72 and replacing them with an almost all rookie team led by Gyzel Sy, Mayjorie Roxas, Christine Agno, Rosemarie Vargas and Kath Magsumbol, that year also marks the return of Maica Morada after her absence from last season. The record of the Lady Tamaraws worsen as they dropped to 5-9 win-loss record finishing season 73 in 6th place.
The rebuilding of the Lady Tamaraws starts to pay off in Season 74 as they finally return in the final four though they were defeated by UST in the step ladder play offs. Wenneth Eulalio returns in season 74 along with new rookies like Samantha Dawson, Winonah Bagang, and Mary Rose Baniel who replaced Kath Magsumbol and other senior players, this season also marked the last year of Maica Morada in the UAAP.
What everyone thought of a slowly but surely rebuilding of the Lady Tamaraws went back to zero as the team part ways from their long time mentor Coach Nes Pamilar, He was replaced by former FEU Mentor Coach Kid Santos, going back to scratch FEU manages to get a 6-8 record ending the season at 6th. Season 75 introduces Remy Palma in the roster of the Lady Tams.
A new era enters for FEU in Season 76 as they put to helm former UST Head Coach and a former Tamaraw Spiker Shaq Delos Santos as their newest head coach, Bernadeth Pons along with Charm Simborio and the towering Gen Casugod were introduced in this season. Season 76 were no good for the Lady Tams as they finished in 5th place after losing to Adamson in the Play offs for the fourth spot.
In season 77 the Lady Tamaraws were able to charge back in the final four after they outlasted the UST Tigresses in the play offs, though they lost to NU Lady Bulldogs in their step ladder match up. Christine Agno was named as the best digger that year. Toni Rose Basas was introduced that year.
Entering season 78 with a complete and solid core line up except for Gyzel Sy who was replaced by Yna Papa, the Lady Tamaraws almost had the prize that they were eyeing after they beat La Salle and erased their twice to beat advantage in their final four battle, but the lack of experience became a huge disadvantage for them as they bowed out of contention finishing third, their highest finish since 2009. That year also marked the final year of Tin Agno in the UAAP.
The Lady Tamaraws fell short again in Season 79, finishing fourth in the tournament after losing to the Ateneo Lady Eagles in their final four match up. Gyzel Sy made a huge comeback playing her final year along with Remy Palma, also the FEU bid adieu to Coach Shaq Delos Santos who resigned after three years of being with the team.
Finally, after 9 long years the Lady Tamaraws are finally given another shot to get their 30th crown and bring back the crown that they rightfully own as they are the winning-est team in the UAAP. But road wasn't easy for the Lady Tamaraws, having a new head coach in Coach George Pascua and the purported return of Rosemarie Vargas due to an injury, FEU hurdled all of this to charge back into the Finals facing a familiar team, the DLSU Lady Spikers.
It will be experience versus determination this Season 80. the Lady Spikers has the championship experience, solid roster, and the best coach plus they got a huge number of fans, but FEU went through the roughest road to reach the top and I bet there's no turning back for the Lady Tams with the solid leadership of Bernadeth Pons.
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