By: Justine Anne Gaerlan
Adamson University secured the first spot in the UAAP Season 86 High School Girls’ Volleyball Tournament Final Four after narrowly escaping the defending champion National University-Nazareth School, 25-22, 20-25, 15-25, 25-17, 15-13 at the Adamson University Gym in Manila on Saturday.
“We thank the Lord for this opportunity na first team nakapasok sa Final Four. I’m overwhelmed sa mga ginawa ng mga bata kasi ‘yung winning mentality talaga pinakita nila kanina,” said Adamson head coach JP Yude after the two hour, six minute thriller.
With the Lady Falcons’ ace, Shai Nitura, at the back, the Lady Bullpups gained a 5-1 advantage, capped off by a quick attack and service ace from Bienne Bansil, prompting Yude to call for a timeout.
Adamson then scored five consecutive points, including back-to-back service aces by MG Del Moral, helping them overtake the lead at 6-5.
After a brief exchange of points, the Lady Baby Falcons stretched their lead to four points until the Lady Bullpups took advantage of their opponent’s errors to narrow it down to a single point.
A soft touch from Nitura brought Adamson to match point before Sam Cantada committed a service error to keep the match alive. Nitura then executed the match-sealing attack for the Lady Baby Falcons, ending the game at 15-13.
Adamson continues to dominate the standings with a perfect 9-0 record, while NUNS retained its place in fourth with an even 4-4 record.
In the second match that also went the distance, University of Santo Tomas recovered from a fourth-set meltdown to repulse Far Eastern University-Diliman, 25-15, 25-27, 25-21, 24-26, 15-11, logging its second straight win.
“Syempre maganda kasi nandun kami sa top two as of now, pero mahaba pa ‘yung liga, marami pang magagandang laban. Maglalaban pa kami ng NU so anything can happen,” said UST head coach Kungfu Reyes.
“Ang problema namin ‘yung Adamson, wala pa ring [talo]. Hopefully, ma-maintain namin ‘yung sa pagiging number two.”
In the boys’ tournament, University of the East bounced back in the win column after overcoming Adamson in four sets, with a score of 25-18, 25-15, 25-27, 25-14.
The Junior Warriors claimed the top spot with a 9-1 record, while Adamson sits in fifth place after dropping to 5-5.
Meanwhile, UST dominated Ateneo in three sets, with a score of 25-7, 25-11, 25-5, securing its third consecutive win.
The Junior Golden Spikers advanced to fourth place with a 6-4 record, while Ateneo, now out of contention for the final four, remains in eighth place with a 0-10 record.
