Ateneo de Manila University picked up its second win at the expense of Adamson University, 25-19, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23 to break a two-game skid in the UAAP Season 86 Women’s Volleyball Tournament, Wednesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Blue Eagles were able to fend off a hard-fighting Lady Falcons side, which put up a tough challenge in the last two sets only to lose in the end.
This now forces a tie with their victim in the fifth and sixth spots through identical 2-4 records.
“First, congrats to all the players and the staff. I’m so happy with how the team played all the time with energy. They followed the tactics. And the most important [thing], we used our service because the service is the first attack,” said Ateneo’s Brazilian coach Sergio Veloso.
Fresh from a huge meltdown in the third frame where it squandered a 20-12 lead, Ateneo made sure to avoid the same mistake twice.
It completed the job in the fourth, with Sobe Buena spearheading a quick 3-0 swing that turned a 20-21 deficit into a 23-21 advantage.
Ayesha Juegos stopped the bleeding for Adamson, but Buena continued her barrage of hits and answered back with a cross-court attack to put the Blue Eagles at match point.
Jennifer Delos Santos committed a service error before Buena delivered the game-clinching hit.
Ateneo was on its way to a sweep after leading by as big as eight points, 20-12, in the third set.
But then the Lady Falcons, led by Rochelle Lalongisip, went on a 13-2 run to extend the game.
Buena and De Guzman carried the scoring load for the Blue Eagles, unloading 22 points each in almost two hours of action. The former also had 10 excellent digs while the latter had eight excellent receptions.
Tsunashima and AC Miner also finished in double figures for Ateneo, scoring 12 points each in the victory.
Taks Fujimoto glued things together with 15 excellent sets and fired two service aces. Meanwhile, Roma Mae Doromal tallied 19 excellent digs and 16 excellent receptions.
The Blue Eagles look to end the opening round on a high note against Far Eastern University on Sunday, 2:00 PM at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
On the other hand, Lucille Almonte, May Ann Nuique, and Lalongisip all had 11 points for the Lady Falcons.
Adamson faces off against the unbeaten University of Sto. Tomas on Saturday, also at 2:00 PM at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
