De La Salle University fended off a late surge by University of Santo Tomas to complete a 25-14, 25-15, 26-24 sweep in the UAAP Season 88 Collegiate Women’s Volleyball Tournament, Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, in front of 15,222 fans.
Just when the Lady Spikers appeared headed for a dominant straight-sets victory after building a 19-14 lead in the third set, the Golden Tigresses clawed their way back.
Angge Poyos and Xyza Gula fueled an 8-3 run to knot the score at 22-all before a Shane Reterta attack error gave UST a 23-22 edge.
Gula then pushed the Golden Tigresses to set point with a spike that grazed the fingers of Mikee Santos for a 24-22 advantage. However, she misfired on the next play to hand La Salle a lifeline.
Shevana Laput eventually willed the Lady Spikers to victory, denying Gula in two straight sequences to seize match point at 25-24 before sealing the win with a deft drop shot to cap the 87-minute contest.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
“Napaghandaan lang namin yung UST. Kumbaga, yung game plan ni coach na sinabi sa kanila, nasunod lang. So yun, ginusto nilang manalo,” said Lady Spikers assistant coach Noel Orcullo.
“Ayun, nag-extend na naman yung third set. Kaya lang talagang ginusto manalo ng mga bata. So ayun yung resulta. Talagang kailangan nilang maghirap talaga.”
La Salle improved to 2-0, joining National University (3-0) and University of the Philippines (2-0) atop the standings.
Laput, the Lady Spikers’ captain, poured in 21 points built on 17 attacks and four blocks, while Angel Canino added 13 markers on nine spikes, three blocks, and an ace.
“Of course, we wanted to win all our games in three sets, and we knew that we can finish the set at 25 points, but we extended it. We just had to show the Lasallian puso. This is very much a team effort right now, even though I got 21 points,” said Laput, who scored 10 points in the pivotal third set.
Reterta chipped in seven points to go with seven digs and six receptions, while Amie Provido contributed seven points on three attacks, three aces, and a block.
The Lady Spikers kept their errors to just 12 and dominated in spiking (39-33), blocking (11-5), and service aces (6-3).
La Salle and UP will break their tie in the standings on Wednesday with a 3:00 PM showdown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
The Golden Tigresses dropped to 0-2. The last time UST opened a campaign with two straight losses was in Season 79 (2017).
Poyos was the lone UST player in double figures with 16 points on 13 attacks, two blocks, and an ace, while Regina Jurado added seven markers.
UST will look to secure its first win on Wednesday against fellow winless squad Ateneo de Manila University.
