THE ATENEO Lady Eagles bowed out to the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws in four sets, 20-25, 21-25, 25-14, 19-25, on Saturday, April 21 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Knocked out of contention for the crown, the Lady Eagles conclude the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 Women’s Volleyball tournament with an early exit in the Final Four round.
Jho Maraguinot and Kat Tolentino led the team in scoring with 11 points each. FEU notched 13 blocks and ten service aces but conceded 41 points due to errors. The Lady Eagles as a team only spiked at a 25% efficiency mainly due to FEU’s blocking and superb floor defense.
Ateneo Head Coach Anusorn “Tai” Bundit started Maddie Madayag, Bea De Leon, Deanna Wong, Jules Samonte, Jho Maraguinot, and Kat Tolentino, while Ponggay Gaston and Ria Lo shared the role of libero. Cacee Gequillana came on to replace Samonte in the first set, while Syd Eleazar was used in the dying moments of the match.
The Lady Eagles held an 8-5 lead at the first technical timeout (TTO) thanks to a block by Wong. Back-to-back blocks by FEU surrendered the lead, 12-13, and a 3-0 scoring run from the Lady Tamaraws put Ateneo down 13-16 heading into the second TTO. Further errors and thwarted attacks plagued the Katipunan-based squad, who eventually surrendered set point via block by FEU’s Maria Cayuna, 20-25.
[1st Set] Cayuna’s block claims the first set for FEU.
Ateneo 20 FEU 25#UAAPVolleyball pic.twitter.com/Ac6nB0ksH1
— Jason Santos (@Jason_TheGUIDON) April 21, 2018
After early runs by both teams, the second set saw a tight battle between the two sides. Errors by Ateneo put them behind by 14-16 at the second TTO, but a 4-0 run coupled with a series of errors from FEU forced the Tamaraws to call a timeout with the score at 19-18. The Lady Tamaraws countered with a 6-2 scoring run and eventually claimed set point at 21-25 with a drop from Bernadeth Pons.
[2nd Set] Pons’ tip sees FEU lead the Blue and White two sets to none.
Ateneo 21 FEU 25#UAAPVolleyball pic.twitter.com/EJCCZuuP7Y
— Jason Santos (@Jason_TheGUIDON) April 21, 2018
The Lady Eagles capitalized on FEU’s early errors and were up by three at the first TTO, 8-5. A block by De Leon pushed the lead to 16-9 at the second TTO, with further errors from the Lady Tamaraws shifting momentum to the opposition. Having turned the tables, Madayag and Wong denied FEU’s Heather Guino-o to take set point, 25-14.
[3rd Set] Wong and Madayag deny Guino-o to claim the third set!
Ateneo 25 FEU 14#UAAPVolleyball pic.twitter.com/GOvirhQ9cJ
— Jason Santos (@Jason_TheGUIDON) April 21, 2018
The Lady Tamaraws struggled to convert in the third set as they surrendered five points via blunders, trailing 8-6 at the first TTO. A 4-0 run by FEU, however, forced the Lady Eagles to call time after a service ace from setter Kyle Negrito made it an 11-13 game. A denial by Lady Tamaraw Toni Basas on Maraguinot gave FEU their sixth block of the set, 12-17, and an ace by Basas put FEU just five points away from taking the match at 15-21. Negrito eventually put the nail on the coffin, blocking Maraguinot to end the match and Ateneo’s season, 19-25.
[4th Set] A block sees FEU advance to the finals round of UAAP Season 80.
Ateneo 19 FEU 25#UAAPVolleyball pic.twitter.com/B1AKHIzmtl
— Jason Santos (@Jason_TheGUIDON) April 21, 2018
Fan favorite coach Tai Bundit will be saying farewell to the UAAP as he concludes his coaching stint with the Lady Eagles. The new head coach is yet to be determined as team management continues to look for the Lady Eagles next mentor.
Set Score
Ateneo-FEU: 20-25, 21-25, 25-14, 19-25
Box Scores
Ateneo: Tolentino – 11, Maraguinot – 11, De Leon – 7, Samonte – 7, Madayag – 6, Wong – 2
FEU: Basas – 17, Pons – 17, Domingo – 8, Guino-o – 7, Negrito – 6, Carandang – 3, Villarreal – 3, Cayuna- 1, Malabanan – 1
