Adamson University and the University of Santo Tomas moved to within a win of reaching the Finals of the 2026 V-League Collegiate Challenge after sweeping their respective opponents in Game 1 of the semifinals on Wednesday at the Playtime FilOil Centre in San Juan City.
The top-seeded Lady Falcons defeated the University of the East, 25-23, 25-17, 25-17, while the second-ranked Golden Tigresses cruised past Arellano University, 25-12, 25-18, 25-13.
Defending champion Adamson will look to close out its series against UE on Saturday at 5 p.m., while UST battles Arellano at 3 p.m., with both matches taking place at the same venue.
With Alas Pilipinas spiker and team captain Shaina Nitura back in the fold, Adamson showed the same form that carried it through the preliminary round.
The Lady Falcons had to work for the opening set, with the two teams locked at 23-all before Adamson found the final two points. Frances Mordi delivered the set-clinching kill to put the defending champions ahead.
Adamson then seized control in the second frame, building a 17-10 advantage before pulling away to take a 2-0 lead.
The Lady Falcons carried that momentum into the third set, with back-to-back kills from Mordi stretching their lead to seven, 19-12, before they completed the sweep.
Mordi led Adamson with 22 points on 16 attacks, three blocks, and three aces, while also recording 10 excellent receptions. Eloi Dote added seven points, including five of Adamson’s 14 blocks, as the Lady Falcons stifled UE’s attack.
Lhouriz Tuddao and Lana Barrera contributed six points apiece, while Nitura had five attacks in the third set, along with two digs and one excellent reception.
Abi Segui and Bella Sapienza also provided a spark off the bench, with Segui delivering timely kills as the Lady Falcons pulled away.
“Siguro, number one thing is yung kumpiyansa na nanalo today. And then, how we worked on doon sa mga lapses at pag-adjust namin. Nag-adjust sila agad,” said Adamson head coach JP Yude.
“But I’m not really satisfied kasi I know them, how they can play, so ‘yon, we’ll work on that,” added Yude.
The Lady Warriors, meanwhile, struggled to generate offense against Adamson’s defense, managing just 28 kills compared to the Lady Falcons’ 14 blocks.
Former Adamson High School standout Janessa Buhay led UE with 12 points, 11 coming from attacks, while senior Van Bangayan was limited to eight markers.
(C) V-League Images
UST, for its part, needed just over an hour to dispose of Arellano and take control of the other semifinal series.
The Golden Tigresses immediately pounced on the Lady Chiefs’ reception problems in the opening set, building a double-digit lead before eventually taking the frame.
Angge Poyos’ booming kill restored UST’s eight-point advantage at 18-10, while her ace stretched the margin to 21-11 as the Golden Tigresses took the first set.
Arellano managed to address its passing woes in the second set and keep the game within striking distance, but UST made the necessary defensive adjustments to pull away and take a commanding 2-0 lead.
The Golden Tigresses then stepped on the gas in the third, racing to a 20-9 advantage behind captain Reg Jurado’s service ace.
Ash Knop followed with two kills, Zinny Unekwe added another ace, and Ella Gutierrez finished the match with a cross-court spike as UST completed the sweep.
Poyos spearheaded the Golden Tigresses with 19 points from 16 attacks and three aces, while also contributing nine digs. Marga Altea added 15 markers, including three blocks.
Jurado posted a double-double of 11 points and 13 digs, while Unekwe chipped in five points off the bench.
“Siguro ‘yung percentage ng performance namin is nagiging good, tumataas. And siyempre ‘yung pag-adapt nila sa system, slowly naiintindihan nila ‘yung gusto naming mangyari. Lahat ng nakita natin kanina, talagang in-invest namin ‘yan sa training,” said UST head coach Shaq Delos Santos.
Arellano failed to have a player reach double figures, with Princess Al-ag leading the Lady Chiefs with seven points. Cris Servidad and Catherine Chu finished with four and five markers, respectively.
With both Adamson and UST now holding 1-0 leads in their respective best-of-three semifinal series, the top two seeds will look to finish the job on Saturday and set up a Finals showdown.
