By: Justine Anne Gaerlan
Adamson University moved a win away from sweeping the elimination round and clinching an outright finals berth in the UAAP Season 86 High School Girls’ Volleyball Tournament after a convincing 25-6, 25-12, 25-11 win over University of the Philippines Integrated School on Saturday.
The Lady Baby Falcons, who are assured of the top ranking at the end of double-round elims, remain undefeated at 11-0.
“Lagi ko lang sinasabi sa kanila na we need to do our best every time kahit sino kalaban. NU man ‘yan, La Salle o kaya UP. Every time we must give one hundred percent para masanay tayo na every time. Especially starting with training, and then eventually sa paglalaro nila,” said Adamson head coach JP Yude.
“‘Yun lang yung ini-instill ko sa kanila lagi. You must do your best, give your best. Number one, give your best sa Panginoon talaga. Kahit anong mangyari kahit anong sabihin ng mga tao sa inyo, kung pangit laro niyo, it does not define you… kaya lagi kong ini-instill sa kanila na always do your best every time. Kahit anong gagawin ninyo, always give your best hangga’t masanay kayo na kahit anumang sitwasyon, anumang kalaban, they give their best all the time,” the concurrent Lady Falcons head coach continued.
The Lady Baby Falcons trailed 4-3 at the onset of the third frame before scoring six straight points consisting of four kills from Shaina Nitura and a pair of service aces from Abby Segui to take a 9-4 lead.
Adamson continued to take control, pushing the lead to double digits with a five-point burst ignited by Sam Cantada’s off-the-block kill.
From there, the Lady Baby Falcons stayed ahead and only allowed the Fighting Maroons to score four more points before Kirsten Carpizo secured the final point with an attack.
Adamson can jump straight to the best-of-three finals with a victory over Far Eastern University-Diliman on Sunday, Jan. 28.
Meanwhile, defending champion National University Nazareth School solidified its chances of securing a spot in the Final Four after a 25-7, 25-13, 25-12 rout of Ateneo.
“Kami naman laging one game at a time muna, preparing for UST muna kasi crucial ‘yun para sa ranking. So ang advice ko sa kanila, do not underestimate ‘yung kalaban mo but take the opportunity na ma-practice ‘yung mga kailangan practice-in, ‘yung passing, ‘yung combinations, ‘yung set plays, ‘yung mga ganon,” said head coach Norman Miguel after his team improved to 6-4.
“Aside from mga technicals, gusto ko ‘yung maturity talaga. ‘Yung connection sa bawat isa. Basically ‘yung teamwork especially ‘pag mga crunch time, kung paano sila mag-aadjust, paano sila kakapit with each other. I think ‘yun na lang talagang kailangan namin magawa o ma-develop sa kanila,” added Miguel, regarding the improvements his team needs to make as the season progresses.
The Lady Bullpups led early on in the third set courtesy of an 11-4 run that ended with a service ace from Celine Marsh.
Ateneo then scored back-to-back points off an attack from Ten Quimpo and an attack error from Yesh Noceja, but Noceja swiftly compensated for the error by scoring three consecutive successful attacks.
With momentum on their side, NUNS continued to distance themselves with a 22-12 lead.
The Lady Bullpups then went on to score the last three points including two consecutive attack errors from the Blue Eagles and an overpass kill from Robielle Silla that sealed the deal.
The Blue Eagles dropped to 2-8 in seventh place, bowing out of contention for the Final Four.
The boys’ division saw leader University of the East securing at least a playoff for a twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four, after dominating UPIS with a sweep, 25-12, 25-15, 25-17.
The Junior Warriors sustained their dominance all the way to the third set, racing to a 20-12 lead.
Towards the end of the set, both teams went back and forth scoring points with each team taking advantage of each other’s attack errors.
However, the deficit proved to be too much for UPIS as an attack from Luis Pollentes brought UE to match point.
An attack from JM Navarro saved the Fighting Maroons a point before Pollentes delivered the finishing kill that closed out the match.
Extending their winning run to three games, UE kept their position at the helm of the standings with an 11-1 record.
UPIS stayed in seventh place with a 1-11 standing.
NUNS strengthened its bid for a twice-to-beat advantage after a commanding victory over Ateneo, 25-10, 25-9, 25-6.
The Bullpups now hold a 10-2 card to remain in second place.
The Bullpups asserted their control from the start, posting a 13-0 lead in the final set.
The Blue Eagles struggled to gain momentum as the Bullpups continued to surge ahead, closing the match on a 6-2 run that concluded with a Charles Panesa attack.
Ateneo remained in last place, struggling to break into the win column with a 0-12 record.
