By: Justine Anne Gaerlan
NATIONAL University Nazareth School secured its second consecutive victory by sweeping Ateneo 25-8, 25-2, 25-6 in the UAAP Season 86 High School Boys’ Volleyball Tournament at the Adamson University Gym on Sunday.
With a stellar offensive performance from Milven Francisco, the Bullpups started strongly in the third frame, embarking on a 6-0 run before an attack error allowed the Blue Eagles to secure their first point.
NUNS continued to extend its lead until pulling away at 22-5. An attack error from the Blue Eagles put the Bullpups at match point, but an off-the-block kill from Ken Nicolas saved Ateneo a match point. A service error from Ron Castros, however, gave NUNS a 25-6 win.
The Bullpups now stand at 2-0, sharing the lead with the Junior Warriors, while Ateneo drops to 0-2.
Powered by efficient passes from setter Andrei Mosuela, the Junior Warriors dominated with a straight-set victory against the De La Salle-Zobel Jr Green Spikers, winning 25-7, 25-7, 25-5.
The Junior Warriors had an excellent start in the final set, scoring five consecutive points with a series of aggressive attacks to take an early lead.
UE relied on a strong performance from Jan Macam and capitalized on the Junior Spikers’ errors to establish a commanding 23-4 lead. Back-to-back kills from Lance Flestado ended the set for UE, winning it 25-5.
DLSZ slipped to 0-2 after losing to Adamson the previous week.
Earlier, FEU-Diliman earned its second straight win in girls’ play, sending Ateneo crashing down with a 25-10, 25-15, 25-5 sweep.
With Clarisse Loresco leading the offense, the Lady Baby Tamaraws rallied from two points down early in the third set, going on a 13-1 run to establish a double-digit lead over the Blue Eagles.
FEU-D then scored nine unanswered points, capped off by back-to-back attack errors from Annika Lim and Ten Quimpo, sealing the win at 25-5.
FEU-D moved up to 2-0 in the standings, while Ateneo, who defeated UPIS last weekend in four sets, fell to 1-1.
The Adamson Lady Baby Falcons also secured back-to-back wins after claiming a 25-18, 25-12, 25-17 victory against the De La Salle-Zobel Jr. Lady Spikers.
Shaina Nitura shone brightly for the Baby Falcons, spoiling the debut of 6-foot-3 Erin Sotto, the 15-year-old sister of former Ateneo Blue Eaglet Kai, for the Junior Lady Spikers.
