The DLSU Lady Spikers grabbed their fifth win in as many games to hold on to solo first place in the standings with a 25-16, 21-25, 25-23, 25-22 victory over the feisty FEU Lady Tamaraws, held at the San Juan Arena.
The Lady Spikers jumped to a 9-1 lead as Ara Galang made noise early with her attacks and blocks. La Salle cruised to a quick first set close while dominating in all departments.
An adjusted FEU squad showed up in the second frame as they forced DLSU to successive errors that hurt the latter in the late moments of the set. The Lady Tamaraws’ combination plays worked wonders as they were able to hang on to the small lead they established.
Gaining momentum, FEU made the third set a close encounter against the powerhouse DLSU squad, but the Taft-based team showed their experience and poise to hang on and eventually grab the tightly-contested set. Timely rejections by the towering Mika Reyes helped the Lady Spikers deny the chance of La Salle being down by a set in a game.
The Lady Spikers looked to finish their opponents early in the fourth set by building a seven-point lead, 18-11. However, the Lady Tamaraws had one last push as they rallied to trim the deficit to a point with the help of the gutsy Bernadette Pons, who had timely spikes late in the set. But it was Reyes who had the final laugh, sealing the match with her two quick middle hits.
Galang posted MVP-caliber numbers once again, leading her squad with 22 points including 19 attacks. In addition, Reyes had 17, seven coming from blocks alone as she made her presence felt against FEU’s spikers. Pons top-scored FEU with her 22, despite her not starting the game.
La Salle committed less errors, 27-32, and blocked more, 10-6, which spelled the difference in this close game against FEU, who pushed the former UAAP champions to their closest game of the season yet.
The scores:
DLSU- Galang 22, Reyes 17, Demecillo 12, Cheng 6, Baron 3, Fajardo 2, Dy 1, Soyud 1, Macandili(L) 0, Cruz Ci(L) 0
FEU – Pons 22, Basas 12, Malabanan 8, Casugud 7, Dawson 4, Palma 4, Papa 1, Simborio 1, Agno(L) 0
