By: Justine Anne Gaerlan
Adamson University secured the final spot in the UAAP Season 87 High School Boys’ Volleyball Final Four with a hard-fought four-set win over Far Eastern University-Diliman, 25-19, 25-21, 21-25, 29-27, on Wednesday at the Filoil Ecooil Centre in San Juan.
Both teams finished the elimination round with identical 7-7 records, leading to a playoff match.
This marks Adamson’s first return to the Final Four since Season 82.
Adamson will face top-seeded University of Santo Tomas in the Final Four.
“Last pasok namin [sa Final Four] Season 82 eh. So, masarap sa feeling kasi pinaghirapan ng mga bata,” said Adamson head coach Marvin Ramoso, expressing his joy over his team’s resilience after a tough 25-16, 25-23, 25-15 defeat to the UE Red Warriors last Sunday.
Second-ranked National University Nazareth School will take on UE in the other Final Four pairing.
The Final Four schedule is yet to be announced.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
The fourth set was a tense back-and-forth battle, with neither team able to gain a clear advantage.
A powerful attack from Tyler Ramos gave FEU-D the first match point, but Adamson’s Jims Ducusin responded with a crucial kill to bring the score to deuce.
The tension escalated as the score reached three more deadlocks.
Finally, Ducusin seized control, delivering two consecutive kills to secure match point and clinch the hard-fought victory.
“Sinasabi ko lang naman sa mga bata, huwag bibitaw. Kahit anong mangyari, kahit lumamang ang FEU, walang bibitaw,” Ramoso added.
“‘Yun ang gusto kong makita kasi sa ensayo, ‘yun ang pinraktis namin eh. Na kapag lamang ang kalaban, anong gagawin sa situation, ano ‘yung second motion na gagawin namin. Dapat kailangan sumunod sa sistema. ‘Yun lang naman ang gusto kong makita, at nangyari naman.”
Ducusin led the Baby Falcons’ attack, finishing with 22 points from 19 attacks, two blocks, and an ace in the intense one-hour and 41-minute match.
Arvin Pon-an also contributed significantly, adding 18 points, including 15 attacks, two blocks, and an ace.
Clark Dingle set up the offense with 19 excellent sets, while Jhon Ian Guevarra anchored their defense with 12 excellent digs.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Ramos paced the Baby Tamaraws in the loss with 17 points, while Zedrick Calimlim and Kenneth Maliwanag added 13 and 10 points, respectively.
