THE ATENEO Blue Eagles claim the last spot in the Final Four of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 84 Women’s Volleyball Tournament as they fended off the Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons, 25-20, 28-26, 22-25 earlier today at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena in Pasay City.
With the high stakes of the do-or-die match, both teams started off the first set with unforced errors caused by apparent early adjustments to each other’s offensive approaches. Ateneo’s second highest scorer Vanie Gandler started building momentum for her squad when she found her footing at the sideline to spark a 5-0 run, 9-5.
The Blue Eagles led for the entire set, as Alexis Miner repeated her excellent performance from their previous match against AdU and dominated the middle once more. Miner—who stands at 6’—capitalized on her height advantage and scored five consecutive points for Ateneo, 15-9, through her blocks and running attacks. Led by libero Princess Balang, the Lady Falcons’ back row defense could not prevent Ateneo from cruising past them and securing the first set, 25-20.
AdU started the second set with more grit than the first, leaving Ateneo behind early in the set, 5-1. However, while the Lady Falcons activated both their offense and defense, the Blue Eagles remained unfazed with Gandler instantly converting two attacks after a timeout. Miner also remained crucial for her team’s offense in the middle, dropping four straight points off drop balls and sliding hits that led to an 8-8 deadlock. While AdU’s improved performance was enough to force an extended set with Trisha Genesis erupting from the attack lines, Ateneo solidified its offense as Miner handed the set to her team, 28-26.
Despite Adamson’s aggressive 4-0 run at the beginning of the third set, the Blue Eagles immediately responded with their own 5-0 run that included Faith Nisperos’ service aces and killblock. Undaunted by Ateneo’s run, Genesis and Aliah Marce’s combined efforts put the Lady Falcons at a two-point lead, 8-6.
Shortly after that play, the Blue Eagles had another 5-0 run off an error from Lucille Almonte. Building on their momentum, Nisperos’ down-the-line kill placed them at a three-point advantage, 17-14. Despite AdU’s rally manifested in Marce’s cut shot and Krich Macaslang’s defensive wall that cut the lead to one, the Blue Eagles remained aggressive with their attacks. Forcing another tie at 21-21 through Miner’s quick play from the middle, Ateneo slowly managed to chalk up points through Nisperos’ attacks. Miner finished the match through a defensive wall on Adamson’s Almonte, 25-22.
Consistently showing up for her team after her impressive performance against the University of the Philippines Lady Fighting Maroons, Alexis Miner again erupted with 16 points from all scoring ends. Nisperos accompanied her in leading the Blue Eagles with her own prowess in both offense and defense, dropping 22 markers, as both showed their dynamism as athletes.
According to the stepladder format following the National University Lady Bulldogs’ eliminations sweep, the Blue Eagles will be facing the third-seed University of Santo Tomas Golden Tigresses on Tuesday, June 14, 6:30 PM at the MOA Arena. The winner of that matchup will in turn face the two seed De La Salle University Lady Spikers.
Set Score:
Ateneo-AdU: 25-20, 28-26, 22-25
Box Scores:
Ateneo: Nisperos – 22, Miner – 16, Gandler – 12, Raagas – 9, Narit – 2, Maraguinot – 1
AdU: Genesis – 13, Almonte – 9, Cruz – 7, Marce – 7, Toring – 5, Macaslang – 3, Nuique – 2, Romero – 1, Santiago – 1, Yandoc – 1
