The Lyceum of the Philippines University Lady Pirates stuck to the defending champions College of Saint Benilde Lady Blazers like a shadow
In the end, the Lady Pirates ended the defending NCAA Champions’ undefeated run in five sets, 25-22, 24-26, 25-18, 20-25, 15-10, Tuesday afternoon at the FilOil Flying V Centre.
The Lady Pirates’ game plan was evident from the get go as their defensive persistence frustrated the Lady Blazers’ attack.
Libero Patrice Inton had 17 digs for the Intramuros ladies, but it was the total team effort of 64 attack receptions that pulled off the win.
After trading sets in the first four frames, the Blazers took the initiative in the deciding frame after getting the 10-8 advantage off a Chelsea Santillan ace.
However, as what kept them in step in the game, a good defensive sequence from the Pirates led to an attack error on Ellaine Dolorito. From there, there was no stopping Lyceum in pulling off this shocker with a Christine Miralles runner.
Middle blockers Miralles and La Rainne Fabay registered six of the team’s seven blocks to complete the double-edged weapon of Lyceum on defense.
Team captain Cherilyn Sindayen led the crew with 16 points, 15 off attacks, and 8 excellent receptions. On the other hand, Fabay pinched 14 points in the day’s battle of central hitters.
Jeanette Panaga put up 18 markers for the defending champions, 16 coming from spikes. Ranya Musa pulled off 11 points despite playing injured.
Sindayen was pleased on how they performed on the net against the Blazers. She said, “Malakas yung dalawang gitna nila. So, ang pinractice namin ng pinractice sa Benilde is yung blocking namin.”
The skipper, however, was amazed that they also did well defensively on the floor. “Nagulat nga ako kasi hindi ko naman nakikita yun sa kanila sa training,” she said.
“Kasi ginagawa namin to para kay Lord, so pinalakas niya siguro kami. Kailangan namin magtiwala sa sarili kung paano niya kami pinalakas,” Sindayen furthered.
The Lady Pirates (3-1) hope to sustain their momentum as they face the Mapua Lady Cardinals on Wednesday, December 14. The defending champions Lady Blazers (4-1) try to bounce back when they face the EAC Lady Generals (0-4) on Monday, December 12 .
The Scores:
LPU (3) – Sindayen 16, Fabay 14, Orros 13, Miralles 12, Sevilla 5, Genova 4, Hongria 3, Inton L, Carramanza L.
CSB (2) – Panaga 18, Musa 11, Santillan 9, Daguil 8, Enginco 4, Austero 2, Dolorito 2, Ventura 1, Umali 1, Sulit 0, Torres L.
