Lady Spikers suffer first defeat at the hands of UST

The De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers (2–1) suffered their first defeat at the hands of the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses (3-0) in five sets, 18-25, 23-25, 25-14, 25-16, 12-15, earlier today at the SM Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena.

The Lady Spikers initially ignited the court with a dynamic off-the-block hit from Alleiah Malaluan. However, both teams were eager to assert dominance which led to multiple deadlocks throughout the set before a powerful hit by Reg Jurado broke through the Malaluan-Shevana Laput block and propelled the Tigresses to a 7-8 lead, marking the first TTO. Post-TTO, both squads displayed remarkable resilience before Malaluan ended the charade with a decisive kill. Despite Angel Canino and Laput’s efforts, Angge Poyos remained on guard to erase any progress made by La Salle, 17-20. UST made quick work of both the use and the lack of defenses by La Salle to make a final 5-0 run before taking the set, 18-25.

In the second set, Poyos initiated with an early down-the-line hit to sustain UST’s momentum, yet Canino’s strategic play propelled the Lady Spikers to a 3-0 lead after plunging a deadly dagger to UST’s open area. Meanwhile, Jonna Perdido kept the Tigresses close with sneaky attacks past the Taft squad blockers, 5-4. On La Salle’s side, Em Provido was consistent in contributing blocks and kills to keep the team one step ahead, 11-10. However, despite going on two 5-1 runs, errors and net violations hampered the Lady Spikers from widening their advantage which resulted in deadlocks both at 15-all and 20-all. What followed was a thrilling sequence that led to standstills until Perdido and Pia Abbu’s triple off-the-block hits secured yet another set for UST, 23-25.

Following their two set losses, Thea Gagate’s almighty hit snatched the first point of the third set and this was enough to spark an early 3-0 run for the Lady Spikers. Despite a few hiccups, Baby Jyne Soreño kept La Salle afloat with her signature booming hits, 5-2. A flurry of regalos and down-the-line hits followed from the Taft-based squad along with formidable blocks from Canino and Provido, 9-3. From there, the Lady Spikers remained seven paces ahead courtesy of Canino’s tactical bullseyes throughout the set before Jules Tolentino’s dump gave La Salle their biggest lead so far, 16-8. Eventually, Canino’s consecutive hits sparked quite a remarkable 8-2 run, capped by Provido’s unstoppable kill to finally secure a set win for Taft, 25-14.

The Green & White kept their momentum going into the fourth set courtesy of the Tolentino-Soreño pair. However, lengthy challenges and impenetrable blocks trapped the two teams into a deadlock several times once again until Taft smooth operator Gagate and heavy-handed Soreño gave the greens enough cushion for errors, 16-10. Meanwhile, the Canino and Provido duo specialized on clean kills to keep the team further ahead, 22-14. With a comfortable cushion capped by a Malaluan down-the-line hit and a final error by UST, the Lady Spikers eventually took the set, 25-16, to extend the match to a fifth set.

Hot from the previous set’s momentum, Malaluan took charge of the final match decider, with two consecutive bullseyes and an error by UST, 3-0. Despite close encounters with the Tigresses, superstar Angel Canino kept the Green and White comfortable with back-to-back cross-court kills, 7-3. Then, Perdido erased all barriers with an open kill but Canino was quick to avenge with a kill and a service ace, 10-8. However, in the dying moments of the match, momentum shifted as UST unleashed a powerful Poyos equalizer at 12-all. The Tigresses soon capped their 6-0 run with a powerful kill, 12–15, handing La Salle their first loss of the season.

The DLSU Lady Spikers (2–1) will aim to regain their momentum as they battle against arch-rivals, the Ateneo de Manila University (Ateneo) Blue Eagles, on Saturday, March 2, 4 PM, at the same venue.

Set scores: 18-25, 23-25, 25-14, 25-16, 12-15

Box scores:
DLSU 2—Canino 28, Gagate 11, Provido 11, Soreño 10, Malaluan 10, Tolentino 8, Laput 6, Coronel 0, Larroza 0, Del Castillo 0, Levina 0, Torres 0, De Leon (L) 0, Hernandez (L) 0

UST 3—Perdido 24, Poyos 22, Banagua 11, Jurado 7, Carballo 2, Plaza 1, Caasi 0, Coronado 0, Gula 0, Penafiel 0, Abbu 0, Pepito (L) 0, Hilongo (L) 0