By: Justine Anne Gaerlan
NATIONAL University–Nazareth School secured the last twice-to-beat advantage in the UAAP Season 88 High School Girls’ Volleyball Tournament after sweeping previously unbeaten Adamson University, 25-15, 25-20, 25-21, Sunday at the Blue Eagle Gym in Loyola Heights, Quezon City.
With the win, NUNS improved to 11-1 after extending its winning streak to five, tying Adamson for the top spot.
“Siguro naging mas composed lang kasi alam naman natin ‘yung Adamson, the way sila talaga maglaro, kailangan talaga ‘yung maging patient talaga versus sa kanila. ‘Yung players [namin], naglaro talaga sila nang maayos, but ‘di pa tapos ‘yung trabaho namin so mag-aaral ulit kami, celebrate lang kami ngayon,” said NUNS head coach Karl Dimaculangan as they were able to avenge their 22-25, 25-17, 23-25, 25-16, 15-12 defeat at the hands of the Lady Baby Falcons last October 15.
The Lady Bullpups opened the third set with authority, shutting out the Lady Baby Falcons early to build a 5-0 lead behind contributions from Rain Navarro, Princess Manzano, and Jhaynna Bulandres.
NUNS continued to dictate the pace as back-to-back hits from Diza Berayo and Akeyla Bartolabac powered a 5-1 run for a 13-7 cushion. But Adamson fought back through Kristal Martin, whose four straight attacks sparked a 9-2 counter that trimmed the deficit to just one, 18-19.
The Lady Bullpups, however, steadied when it mattered most.
Gonzalvo tried to keep Adamson within striking distance with a pair of kills, but Navarro answered with a crafty 1-2 play to keep NUNS ahead.
After both sides exchanged service errors, Manzano delivered a crucial kill to reach set point, and Ysabella Cruz sealed the match at 25-21.
Berayo and Manzano paced NUNS with 11 points apiece—Berayo scoring all her points on attacks, while Manzano tallied six attacks, four blocks, and an ace.
Bartolabac added 10 points on eight attacks and two aces in the hour-and-15-minute victory.
Atasha Doroja anchored the floor defense with 14 excellent digs and 10 excellent receptions, while Navarro tallied 12 excellent sets.
Ellaine Gonzalvo led Adamson with 10 points, all off attacks, while Martin contributed nine in the loss.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
Earlier, Far Eastern University–Diliman also avenged its first-round loss to University of Santo Tomas, rallying from a slow start to pull off a 15-25, 25-12, 25-23, 25-21 victory to extend its four-game winning streak and bolster its Final Four bid.
The Lady Baby Tamaraws fell behind 5-1 in the fourth set but stormed back with seven unanswered points to take an 8-5 lead, capitalizing on several UST errors and key attacks from Joeyana Bongo and MJ Udeagbala.
FEU-D later unleashed a commanding 8-1 run to break the set open, 22-13. UST mounted a late six-point surge behind Nicole Pelaez and an ace from Kim Peralta to cut the gap to 22-19.
But the Junior Golden Tigresses’ rally fizzled out. FEU-D reached match point on an off-the-block hit by Aiumi Oso before Cathlyn Umal ended the match with a smart tip, 25-21.
Udeagbala erupted for a career-high 28 points built on 20 attacks, five blocks, and three aces.
Bongo added 11 points on nine attacks, while Franz Premaylon tallied 10 digs in the 97-minute showdown.
Despite the loss, Pelaez led UST with 10 points, while Peralta finished with nine.
FEU-D climbed to solo third at 8-4, while UST slipped to 7-5 in fourth.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
Meanwhile, De La Salle Zobel kept its Final Four hopes alive with its second straight win, dispatching University of the Philippines Integrated School, 25-9, 25-20, 25-14.
Kylie Celada powered the Junior Lady Spikers with 12 points on 11 spikes, while Aislinn Alemaña added 11 on nine attacks in the 64-minute contest. Angel Cenizal helped stabilize DLSZ’s defense with 10 excellent digs.
DLSZ improved to 6-6 for fifth place, while the Junior Fighting Maroons, already out of contention, fell to 3-9.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
On the other hand, University of the East finally broke through, earning its first win of the season with a 25-21, 25-22, 21-25, 25-16 triumph over Ateneo de Manila University.
It marked UE’s first victory since Oct. 13, 2019, when it defeated UPIS, 25-13, 25-17, 25-20, in Season 82.
Daisy Tomaque led all scorers with 20 points, all from attacks, along with 14 digs.
Janella Mangahis delivered an all-around performance with 16 points on 12 attacks and four aces, while also collecting 13 digs. Fergie Dela Cruz steered the offense with 15 excellent sets.
For Ateneo, Luanne Atienza finished with 16 points from 11 attacks, four aces, and a block.
The win lifted the Junior Lady Warriors to 1-11, while the Blue Eagles also dropped to 1-11, leaving both teams tied for seventh and eighth place.
