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UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas (UST) ended Lyceum’s five-game
winning run and its own two-game slide at the same time,
25-15, 25-14, 25-20, yesterday in the Shakey’s V-league
at The Arena in San Juan.
The
match seemed like a reversal of fortunes wherein the
struggling Tigresses lorded over the previously
dominating Lady Pirates, who struggled all game long.
Santo
Tomas, the inaugural champion of the tournament, did
everything right to pull the shocker against an off-form
Lyceum, which looked rusty after taking a weeklong rest
in the tournament sponsored by Shakey’s and organized by
Sports Vision Management Group Inc.
The
Tigresses rose to every challenge Lyceum gave them. UST
took control early in the first set but Lyceum rallied
to tie the count at 13. Then, the España-based squad
scored seven unanswered points to move away from their
opponent.
It was
the same in the third set when Lyceum made a strong
comeback to close in at 20-22, but UST unleashed three
straight points to finish the match.
Behind
the prolific performances of University Athletic
Association of the Philippines Most Valuable Player Mary
Jane Balse and Venus Bernal, UST was too much for
Lyceum.
The
Muralla-based spikers couldn’t answer Bernal and Balse,
who hit both powerful and soft shots for UST.
The win
gave the Tigresses a 3-3 card for at least a playoff for
the last semifinals slot while Lyceum just suffered its
first setback in six outings.
In the
second game,
San Sebastian
won its fourth straight game as it downed
upset-conscious Adamson, 25-18, 25-27, 25-21, 25-17.
That win
moved the Lady Stags into a tie with the Lady Pirates at
the top of the standings, also with a 5-1 record.
After
losing the second set, the Lady Stags made fierce
attacks to win the next two.
The loss
gave Adamson, which holds a 2-4 record, a slim chance to
clinch a semifinals berth in the tournament backed by
Mikasa, Accel and Jaemark’s Restaurant.
Games
are telecast over NBN-4 across the week from 2 p.m. to 4
p.m. and replayed over Viva Prime from 8:30 a.m. to
10:30 a.m. Mondays through Saturdays.
Meanwhile, two games are slated on Sunday, also at The
Arena. De La Salle tries to get an outright semifinals
slot against Lyceum in the opening game, while Adamson
has to beat Letran to gain a chance for the next round.
The
Green Archers have a 3-3 slate and a win will give them
an automatic pass into the next round while Lyceum will
give its all out best to get the victory since it will
carry their record in the semis.
Letran
has no chance to earn a semifinals slot with a 1-5 card.
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