The top-seeded National University Bulldogs breezed past the University of Santo Tomas Tiger Spikers, 25-13, 25-13, 25- , to enter the UAAP Season 80 Men’s Volleyball Finals for the sixth straight season at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Bulldogs easliy romped their España-basee foes in the first two sets through steady blocking and floor defense. The spikers from Jhocson only faced resistance in the third set when UST claimed a 19-16 lead. Following a timeout, the Bulldogs quickly stormed ahead thanks to clutch hitting and serving from Bryan Bagunas. The National Team stalwart ended up scoring four of NU’s next five points for a 24-22 lead.
UST eventually dueled the Bulldogs into a deuce, in which Bagunas delivered five points, including the game-winning block.
The Batangas-native finished with a career-high 29 points off 24 attacks, three aces and a pair of blocks.
“Hindi lang naman po ako, lahat kaming team talagang buhos na kami sa lahat ng games,” said Bagunas. “Kailangan namin ibigay lahat kasi gusto namin makapasok sa Finals at makapag-champion.”
NU takes on the winner of the Ateneo-FEU tiff in the Finals which starts on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Ty Carodan, Arnold Bautista, and Jayvee Sumagaysay all exhausted their playing eligilities in the UAAP. Sumagaysay finished his UAAP career with a 10-point performance, Bautista had three while Carodan managed two.
The Scores
NU (3) – Bagunas 29, Gampong 8, Natividad 7, Malabunga 6, Dayandante 3, Saura 3, Ismail 1, Ancheta 0, Marcos (L)
UST (0) – Sumagaysay 10, Umandal 9, Icalina 5, Bautista 3, Medina 3, Carodan 2, Arbasto 1, Casillan 0, Tajanlangit 0, Sawal (L)
