National University delivered a convincing 25-16, 25-12, 27-25 victory over De La Salle University to move one step closer to defending its title in the Shakey’s Super League Collegiate Pre-season Championship. The match took place on Friday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
Camille Lamina showcased her playmaking prowess, dishing out 15 excellent sets to lead NU’s offensive flow.
Her stellar performance earned her Player of the Game honors as the Lady Bulldogs positioned themselves just one win away from securing their third consecutive championship in the best-of-three series in this tournament supported by sponsors such as Shakey’s Pizza Parlor, GCash, Chery Tiggo, F2 Logistics, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, Potato Corner, R and B Milk Tea, Grab Philippines, and Summit Water.
(C) Roman Prospero/SSL
NU’s offense was powered by its MVP duo of Alyssa Solomon and Bella Belen.
Solomon tallied 14 points built on 12 attacks, one ace, and a block, while Belen contributed 10 points, all from attacks.
Their efforts helped the Lady Bulldogs wrap up the match in just an hour and 39 minutes.
Vange Alinsug also chipped in with seven points as NU exacted a measure of revenge against La Salle, which had defeated them in the second round on October 20 in four grueling sets, 32-30, 15-25, 25-22, 25-21.
“Nakakataas siya ng kumpiyansa lalo na kapag sine-set ko ‘yung bola sa one-block, nakaka-boost talaga siya ng confidence ko as a setter,” Lamina shared in a post-game interview. “Tingin ko mas gagalingan pa namin. Bukas balik kami sa training and then improve namin ‘yung mga kailangan pa naming i-improve sa specific area ng laro namin.”
First-year Lady Bulldogs head coach Sherwin Meneses commended the team’s performance but emphasized the need to minimize errors moving forward.
“’Yung finals kasi siyempre iba na ‘yung atmosphere and level ng game, so I think match naman ‘yung two teams,” Meneses explained. “Kailangan ma-limit namin ‘yung mga basic errors namin. ‘Yung ang no. 1 target namin na maiwasan.”
The Lady Bulldogs will aim to seal their third straight championship in Game 2, scheduled for 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 24, at the same venue.
(C) Roman Prospero/SSL
On the other hand, La Salle struggled to match NU’s firepower.
Shevana Laput was the lone bright spot for the Lady Spikers with 12 points, while Angel Canino was limited to just eight points in a subdued outing.
