Frances Mordi and Shaina Nitura delivered the crucial hits at crunch time as Adamson University lived to fight another day with a masterful sweep of twice-to-beat University of the Philippines, 25-20, 25-17, 26-24, in the 2026 Shakey’s Super League Unity Cup quarterfinals on Saturday at the Muntinlupa Sports Center.
The veteran duo combined for 15 points in the third set while main setter Fhei Sagaysay returned from an ankle injury and orchestrated the Lady Falcons’ relentless assault in the one-hour, 30-minute victory.
Third-seeded Adamson will try to complete an upset of the higher-ranked Fighting Maroons in a sudden-death showdown for a semifinal berth on Sunday at the same venue.
“Siyempre, twice-to-beat ‘yung UP. Mahirap talaga sa part namin na kailangan namin silang talunin nang dalawang beses. Ang kailangan lang naming gawin ay maging composed kami para sa next game namin and more effort pa sa naging outcome ngayon,” Sagaysay said.
Mordi scored 15 points, 10 in the third set, on 12 kills, two kill blocks and an ace while Nitura finished with nine markers on a 9-of-22 spiking clip for the Lady Falcons, who avenged their group stage loss to UP.
Sagaysay, who returned after a one-month recovery from a right ankle injury, tallied 12 excellent sets to help Adamson register 43 attack points.
“First of all, grateful ako na nakabalik ako after one month. Ang napi-feel ko lang ngayon ay sobrang saya dahil na-overcome namin as a team ang challenge ngayon. We know na hindi pa ito pagtatapos and alam namin na marami pang challenges and mas marami pa kaming mga games na kailangang harapin at challenges na kailangan naming i-overcome as a team,” Sagaysay said.
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Adamson encountered tough resistance from UP in a nip-and-tuck third set after cruising through the first two frames.
The Fighting Maroons flipped an 18-20 deficit into a 23-21 advantage after a Bienne Bansil hit from the middle. Mordi answered with back-to-back kills to knot the count at 23.
Kianne Olango put UP at set point, 23-24, but Nitura fired back with a crosscourt hit to extend the set.
Mordi hammered a crosscourt kill to bring Adamson to match point before Nitura finished off the Fighting Maroons with a sharp backrow attack that slipped past UP’s defense, sending the Lady Falcons faithful into jubilation.
Jelai Gajero scored 13 of her 14 points on kills while Olango added eight on six spikes and two kill blocks for the Fighting Maroons.
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Meanwhile, Far Eastern University shrugged off a second-set hiccup to eliminate Ateneo de Manila University, 25-18, 19-25, 25-15, 25-13, and secure the first Final Four berth of the day.
The twice-to-beat second-seeded Lady Tamaraws quickly regrouped after their second-set meltdown, rediscovering the sustained intensity they displayed in the opening frame to book their place in the knockout semifinals.
FEU will face the quarterfinals winner between twice-to-beat University of Santo Tomas and College of Saint Benilde, who were still playing as of press time, in the Final Four on November 21 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Cla Loresco led the Lady Tamaraws with 15 points on 10 kills, four kill blocks, and an ace.
“Nu’ng first set and second set, masyadong marami ang errors namin. Siguro nadala rin kami na mababa ang emosyon namin,” the FEU middle blocker said.
Kyle Pendon scored 11 of her 12 points from spikes while Gerzel Petallo and Lovely Lopez added 10 markers each for the Lady Tamaraws.
After cruising through the first set, FEU struggled to shake off the Blue Eagles in the second frame. The game was tied at 11 when Ateneo unleashed a 10-2 run to seize control, 21-13. The Blue Eagles maintained their advantage as Zey Pacia closed out the set with a block-breaking hit.
The Lady Tamaraws responded by adjusting their game plan, applying early pressure with improved service reception and blocking to give setter Karyll Miranda better control and more opportunities to set up high-percentage attacks.
“Sobrang proud din ako sa mga kasama ko. Kasi ang haba ng preparation namin and sobrang nakakapagod nga siya kasi ang haba. Sana ‘di lang kami maging kampante sa bawat laro namin,” Loresco added.
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Ana Hermosura was the lone Ateneo player in double-digit scoring with 10 points, all from kills. Dona De Leon had eight markers while Jihan Chuatico and Sophia Buena scored six each in the Blue Eagles’ final game of the tournament.
The winner of the Adamson-UP do-or-die match will face the survivor between five-peat-seeking National University and Letran in the knockout semifinals, also scheduled for November 21 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The competition is backed by Shakey’s Pizza Parlor, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, Potato Corner and R&B Milk Tea, with the Philippine Sports Commission, Commission on Higher Education, Mikasa, Asics, Rigour Technology, Jersey Haven, Solar Sports and 12 Beyond Production serving as technical partners.
All games are available live and on demand via PusoP.com and Solar Sports.
