Following a monumental meltdown in the first set, the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws recovered and downed the National University Lady Bulldogs, 22-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-12, to take their first win in UAAP Season 81 at the FilOil Flying V Centre.
The veteran Lady Tamaraws put the young Lady Bulldogs to the test in the first set, going up 21-14. FEU’s reception, however, tanked and opened the door for NU to go on an 11-1 run that closed the set.
“Nagkaroon lang kami ng mga kailangang adjustment kanina. Naging maayos naman,” said FEU head coach George Pascua.
From there, FEU dominated, taking quick double-digit leads in each of the last three sets. The Lady Bulldogs also suffered a major blow to their lineup, as their lone setter in rookie Joyme Cagande went down with an apparent ligament sprain in her left knee.
“Good win for us, pero marami pa kaming kailangan ayusin based sa performance namin. ‘Yun ang magiging focus namin,” Pascua insisted.
Rookie Lycha Ebon topped the Lady Tams with 13 points off nine attacks and four aces. Heather Guino-O and Celine Domingo each tallied 11 markers.
Rookies Ivy Lacsina and Princess Robles powered in 14 and 13 points, respectively, to top NU. The Lady Bulldogs lost last year’s MVP Jaja Santiago, setter Jasmine Nabor, Jorelle Singh, and Risa Sato. They debuted eight rookies and fielded an 11-woman lineup.
The Lady Tamaraws (1-0) take on the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons (1-0) in a rematch of the PVL Collegiate Conference Finals on Wednesday. Meanwhile, NU (0-1) will try to recover against the University of the East Lady Warriors (0-1) on Saturday. Both matches will be played at the FilOil Flying V Centre.
The Scores
FEU (3) – Ebon 13, Domingo 11, Guino-O 11, Malabanan 10, Negrito 8, Carandang 5, Hernandez 2, Cayuna 1, Ronquillo 1, Villareal 0, Duremdes (L)
NU (1) – Lacsina 14, Robles 13, Paran 11, Doria 7, Cagande 2, Landicho 1, Luceno 1, Orillaneda 0, Chavez (L)
