Lady Spikers sweep Ateneo, strengthen bid for a twice-to-beat advantage
The De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers (11–2) secured a dominant victory as they swept the Ateneo De Manila University (Ateneo) Blue Eagles (4–9), 25–12, 25–12, and 25–18 earlier today at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. This triumph further strengthened the Green and White’s bid for a twice-to-beat Final Four advantage.
The first set opened with a powerful attack by Aleiah Malaluan, setting the tone of the game. Thea Gagate also made an impact early in the set with a strong block on Lyann De Guzman, bringing the score to 2–0. Despite Angel Canino and Jynne Soreño being absent from the court, Maicah Larroza challenged the Blue Eagles, contributing a strong spike to give La Salle a four-point lead. While the Lady Spikers displayed great offense and defense, De Guzman made it difficult for the Taft-based squad to respond quickly with her powerful hits from the opposite side of the court. Amidst multiple unforced errors from both teams, Shevana Laput stepped up and made it hard for Ateneo to defend, with her strong attacks, 11–5. With Gagate and Malaluan looming at the net, La Salle maintained a consistent three-point lead against De Guzman’s attacks, bringing the score to 18–7. Following multiple attacks by Gagate and Laput, Sophia Buena made her presence known, scoring for Ateneo. However, Amie Provido likewise showcased her strength with a powerful hit from the middle, to bring the Green and White to set point, 24–13. As Geezel Tsunashima’s attack attempt went out, the Lady Spikers soon claimed the first set, 25–12.
At the beginning of the second set, both teams suffered from unforced errors, before a Gagate block on De Guzman placed La Salle ahead, 3–2. The Lady Spikers’ mindset to immediately recover after making a mistake was evident when Gagate’s attack error was quickly redeemed with a powerful middle attack. In the following sequence, Ateneo’s Tsunashima utilized blockers like Julia Coronel and Gagate to score easy points. Meanwhile, Malaluan, observing the defense of Ateneo, attempted to confuse them by executing a soft attack, bringing the score to 13–7. With multiple errors from Ateneo, La Salle gained free points. From there, Provido landed back-to-back attacks, a running attack, and a middle attack to further widen the separation, 23–10. Soon, an Ateneo net touch awarded La Salle the second set, 25–12.
Seeking to end the match early, Malaluan kicked things off in the third set with an attack from the outside. However, Faye Nisperos managed to play against the tall blockers of La Salle and successfully pushed one through, tying the game at 2-all. In response, Provido aimed to finish things quickly and contributed block points and a running attack, making it 7–4. Following this, Zey Pacia and Katherine Cortez attempted to regain momentum for Ateneo, as they read Malaluan’s attacks well and blocked the latter’s spike attempt. Even from the back row, Laput continued to make her presence felt with strong attacks that Ateneo could not counter. With credit to Coronel’s setting and playmaking, and also with the great defense shown by Lyka De Leon, La Salle managed to regain momentum via attacks from Laput to bring the score to 20–14. Multiple attack errors from the Blue Eagles, further widened the Green and White’s advantage, 22–16. Nearing the end of the match, Nisperos saved a match point, but Laput then effortlessly dropped the ball behind the two blockers to conclude the match, 25–18, granting La Salle a sweep-set victory.
The Lady Spikers (10–3) will look to wrap up round two of the eliminations with another W as they take on the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses on Saturday, April 27, 6 PM, at the same venue.
Set scores: 25–12, 25–12, 25–18
Box scores:
DLSU 3 — Gagate 16, Laput 15, Provido 7, Larroza 6, Malaluan 6, Coronel 4, Canino 0, Soreno 0, Del Castillo 0, Torres 0, Tolentino 0, Levina 0, De Leon 0 (L), Hernandez 0 (L)
ADMU 0 — Tsunashima 6, De Guzman 6, Nisperos 5, Buena 4, Miner 3, Pacia 2, Cortez 2, Sulit 1, Fujimoto 1, Delos Santos 0, Selga 0, Lomocso 0, Doromal 0 (L), Hugo 0 (L)
