In front of a jampacked 4,600 screaming fans, the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles swept the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons in a tightly-played match, 25-20, 25-22, 28-26, Sunday afternoon in the Filoil Flying V Centre.
The tight scoreline for all sets displayed how, despite a straight, three-set win, it was not a walk in the park for the blue and white.
The Lady Eagles had a 4-0 start as the Lady Maroons’ struggled with first balls once again. Eventually, through Tots Carlos and Isa Molde’s attacks, UP gained their footing and exchanged scores with Ateneo to push to 23-20. But Bea De Leon conspired with Jho Maraguinot as she closed the first set with a service ace that went down the line.
The second set was opened by another dominant showing by Ateneo, and even picked up a 12-6 lead. But when it started to look like a blowout, Ateneo were held back by their errors, and UP took advantage. Molde came through and brought UP within two, 24-22, but Maraguinot finished the set with a raging cross-court attack, 25-22.
Middle blocker Jessma Ramos incurred a right foot sprain early in the third as she was in position to block Kat Tolentino, as Tolentino accidentally stepped on her right foot. The third set was a different story, as the Lady Maroons took their turn to take the lead, 7-5.
“UP fought a lot harder in the third set, bumilis yung laro eh. A bit of [problem with] our communication [in the third set]. We were up two [sets so] we were lax a bit. Coach [Tai] will always remind us that we win if we talk and we are happy,” De Leon shared post-game.
Eventually, Ateneo caught up and managed to even reach 24 points first. UP tried to fight back, but in an exchange of service errors and wide attacks, Ateneo bagged the set and match, 28-26.
Season 79 Rookie of the Year Jules Samonte scored the most for the Lady Eagles with 15 points, while Maraguinot and De Leon contributed 11 and nine markers respectively.
For the Maroons, Carlos led the scoring once again with 20 points, while Molde poured in 16 markers.
UP skidded to their fourth straight loss, and their schedule is not getting easier as they are set to face the UST Golden Tigresses on Wednesday. Ateneo, now at 4-2, will draw confidence from this win for their next match — the highly anticipated game against rival De La Salle University Lady Spikers on March 3.
“I think it’ s gonna be the most exciting game. Being on the actual court and actual game is a really big help for us [going into Ateneo-La Salle].”
The Scores:
ADMU 3 – Samonte 15, Maraguinot 11, De Leon 9, Madayag 9, Tolentino 7, Wong 1, Ravena L, Lo L
UP 0 – Carlos 20, Molde 16, Layug 7, Estranero 2, Cailing 2, Lim 1, Rosier 1, Buitre 1, Thai L, Dorog L
