Lady Spikers race to 9-0 record

In repeat win over UST Golden Tigresses in four sets

Games on Saturday
(UST Quadricentennial Pavilion)
9 a.m. – AdU vs UE (Men)
11 a.m. – AdU vs UE (Women)
1 p.m. – NU vs Ateneo (Men)
3 p.m. – NU vs Ateneo (Women)

UNBLEMISHED De La Salle University (DLSU) zeroed in on a playoff berth with a 25-12, 18-25, 25-23, 25-14 repeat win over University of Santo Tomas (UST) in the UAAP Season 88 women’s volleyball on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

After splitting the first two sets, DLSU Lady Spikers staged a telling 13-3 rally in the third set to erase an 8-point deficit and prepared the stage for an easy closeout en route to a 9-0 record.

La Salle, with still five games to go, secured a playoff for one of the final four berths and could clinch an outright slot with a win against the University of the Philippines this Sunday. An automatic final ticket, given a 14-0 sweep, is also very much in play for the Lady Spikers.

Angel Canino, running third in the MVP race, bested top contender Angge Poyos in another marquee duel with 17 points on 15 hits and two blocks glittered by seven digs and five receptions.

Her scoring partner Shevana Laput, who slid to sixth in the MVP derby after missing two games in the first round, contributed 14 while Shane Reterta (10), Amie Provido (9) and Lilay Del Castillo (7) were also instrumental.

League-leading playmaker Eshana Nunag facilitated La Salle’s onslaught with 20 sets on top of her three points and four digs while libero Lyka De Leon had 11 digs and 10 receptions.

It took La Salle one hour and 52 minutes to hack out the win but a mastery nonetheless on Santo Tomas following a 25-14, 25-15, 26-24 sweep in the first round.

La Salle slowly but surely melting Santo Tomas’ massive 20-12 upper hand in the third set behind a strong finishing kick capped by Ms. Canino’s crosscourt hit. Ms. Reterta had an ace while Ms. Del Castillo denied a hit prior for La Salle’s 3-0 finisher.

It was all La Salle from there, seizing a 7-0 advantage in the fourth set on its way to its best start in two seasons.

“It was very much a battle of endurance. Who wanted it more, who could last the longest in terms of positive mindset, and in terms of aggressiveness,” added Ms. Laput, slowly coming back into fine form as La Salle tries to get away from the tightrope final four race.

Ms. Poyos had her usual all-around numbers with 20 points, 12 receptions and seven digs but the UST Golden Tigresses absorbed a costly loss to fall to 5-4 at No. 4.

Regina Jurado (12) and Nigerian middle blocker Blessing Unekwe (8) added help for Santo Tomas, which could have joined reigning champion National University (6-3) and Far Eastern University (6-3) at joint second in the toss-up for the coveted twice-to-beat incentive in the final four.

In the men’s division, Ateneo (5-4) regained solo fourth place after a 25-19, 25-27, 25-22, 25-20 victory over Adamson (2-7) and the big 25-18, 30-28, 25-23 win of Santo Tomas (6-3) to snap the four-game spree of La Salle (4-5), which slid to fifth. — John Bryan Ulanday