University of Santo Tomas women’s and men’s beach volleyball teams completed a flawless sweep of the elimination round on Sunday, asserting their dominance in the UAAP Season 87 Collegiate Beach Volleyball tournament at Sands SM By The Bay.
The Tiger Sands stayed on track for a remarkable third consecutive golden double without dropping a single set.
In the women’s division, UST’s Sofiah Pagara and Khy Progella secured the top seed with a commanding 21-16, 21-11 victory over National University’s Honey Grace Cordero and Kat Epa in a battle of undefeated teams.
The duo finished the eliminations with a pristine 7-0 record and will face Far Eastern University in the knockout semifinals.
FEU’s Lovely Lopez and Melody Pons clinched the fourth seed with a decisive 21-18, 21-14 win over University of the Philippines’ Euri Eslapor and Julia de Leon, ending the round with a 4-3 slate.
Adamson University, the tournament’s biggest surprise, claimed the third seed. Rookies Shai Nitura and Fei Sagaysay powered the Lady Falcons to a 5-2 finish after defeating Ateneo’s Liz Lomocso and Gena Hora, 21-17, 21-16.
Adamson will face NU (6-1) in the other semifinal clash.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
The UST men’s team, led by Dominique Gabito and Alche Gupiteo, mirrored the women’s success, completing a 7-0 sweep.
They outclassed NU’s Alex Iraya and Sky Gemarino, 21-11, 21-14, in another high-stakes matchup of undefeated teams.
NU settled for second place with a 6-1 record and will face third-ranked FEU in the Final Four.
The Tamaraws solidified their spot with a 21-14, 21-14 victory over Ateneo’s JM Yu and Carl Corregidor, improving to 5-2.
UP’s Angelo Lipata and Christian Pitogo claimed the last Final Four berth after surviving a grueling 21-11, 18-21, 15-9 triumph against De La Salle’s Andre Espejo and Von Marata.
Their win, witnessed by England’s Joaquin and Javier Bello—former FIVB World Tour gold medalists—secured a 4-3 record and eliminated any possibility of a playoff for the fourth seed.
The Green Spikers finished with a 2-5 slate and failed to advance.
Adamson’s Willie Hiltones and Iverson Tan capped their season with a 21-9, 21-13 win over UE’s Allen Buensalida and Julian Celestial, ending with a 3-4 record.
Despite their victory, Adamson fell one win short of forcing a do-or-die playoff for the last semifinal spot.
In other matches, De La Salle finally broke their losing streak as Ela Raagas and Julliane Javelosa earned a consolation win against UE’s Van Bangayan and Ash Cañete, 21-15, 21-8.
Both teams wrapped up their campaigns with identical 1-6 records.
With no postseason implications, alternates were fielded, with Javelosa replacing Sophia Sindayen for La Salle and Cañete subbing in for Revilla after the second set for UE.
The semifinals are set for Tuesday morning, with the championship and third-place matches to follow in the afternoon. (TJ)
