ATENEO de Manila rallied from 1-2 down and pulled off an epic win against De La Salle, 25-22, 25-27, 16-25, 25-14, 15-9, at the end of a first-round play in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 77 women’s volleyball tournament on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The win proved to be sweet for the Lady Eagles, putting them not only in first place at the end of the first round with an unblemished 7-0 win-loss card but also drawing first blood in their highly anticipated finals rematch.
Reigning Most Valuable Player Alyssa Valdez once again asserted her might, scoring 26 points off 20 hits, three blocks and three aces. Amy Ahomiro played the support role well with 13 points off eight hits, three blocks and three aces, with Ella de Jesus and rookie Bea de Leon adding nine points apiece.
Trailing 17-21 at the tail end of the first set, Ateneo did not show any sign of fatigue from playing a day earlier against University of the East and completed a rousing comeback, led by stars Ahomiro and Valdez, to take home the first set, 25-22.
However, De La Salle showed signs of life in the second set, denying the Lady Eagles from repeating the same comeback feat in the first canto to take home a 27-25 win.
During the pivotal third set, the Lady Eagles fell to a maze of errors, 16 to be exact, allowing La Salle to take the set, 25-16, for a 2-1 lead in the match.
But the positive inspiration of Thai Head Coach Anusorn “Tai” Bundit propelled the Lady Eagles foward, overcoming their sloppy performance in the previous sets to finish strong in the final fray.
Captain Ara Galang pulled the wagon for the Green Lady Spikers, scoring 11 points off eight spikes, while Cyd Demecillo and Mika Reyes had nine and eight, respectively.
In the firs women’s game, National University (NU) leapfrogged back into contention by putting away Adamson University in four sets, 25-17, 25-16, 22-25, 25-19, and finished their first round back in the Final Four picture.
The Lady Bulldogs, pulling back-to-back wins under interim mentor Roger Gorayeb, relied on veteran middle hitter Jaja Santiago, who put up her second 20-plus points contest with 26 off 21 hits and five blocks.
Myla Pablo contributed 15 markers, 14 from spikes, while captain Siemens Dadang and Roma Doromal scattered seven and six, respectively.
The result thus vaulted the Lady Bulldogs to third place with a superior 4-3 record, ahead of the troika of University of the Philippines, Adamson and Far Eastern University (FEU), tied in fourth place with identical 3-4 records.
“Medyo nakuha na nila ang ine-explain ko sa kanila, ‘yung gusto kong gagawin nila. Kaunting tulak na lang. May mga flaws pa rin. Pero okay lang. Kung nasa scale of 100, nasa 60 percent na kami for five days of practice,” NU Coach Roger Gorayeb said. “’Yung changes na gusto ko, napi-pickup na nila unti-unti.”
Amanda Villanueva scored all of her 14 markers from hits, with Mylene Paat and Jessica Galanza putting up 13 and 10, respectively, for the Lady Falcons.
In the men’s division, Ateneo de Manila exacted revenge on Season 76 tormentor NU in five sets, 20-25, 25-21, 18-25, 25-19, 15-10, to draw first blood on the erstwhile undefeated Bulldogs.
Last year’s rookie-MVP awardee Marck Espejo smashed 22 attacks and three service aces as part of his 26 markers in the contest. Skipper Ysrael Marasigan added 15 points, while Ishmael Rivera contributed 10 for the Blue Eagles.
Image credits: Kevin Dela Cruz