THE ATENEO Blue Eagles continue their University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85 stint with a win against the Adamson University (AdU) Soaring Falcons, 20-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-23, 15-10. The Men’s Volleyball Tournament match was held earlier today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum at Quezon City.
Today’s victory now gives the Blue and White a 5-4- win-loss standing for the tournament as they sit at fifth place.
Opening the Battle of the Skies with a back-and-forth affair, the Blue Eagles failed to secure a lead against the Soaring Falcons. Despite Ateneo’s forceful attempts in outsmarting the opposition to tie the score at seven, Adamson was quick to adapt to the Blue Eagles’ offense, 7-8. Although Chad Absin’s and Amil Pacinio’s quick-witted slams claimed momentum for the team from the front line, the Blue Eagles’ error-plagued court defense handed four consecutive points to the Soaring Falcons, 9-12.
Ateneo struggled to close Adamson’s two-point lead and handed more points to the Soaring Falcons towards the final stretch of the first canto, 18-20. Despite failing to receive Jian Salarzon’s and Pacinio’s sharp attacks from the wings, Adamson powered through Ateneo’s three-man block to claim the set, 20-25.
With the Blue Eagles still struggling to find their rhythm, the Soaring Falcons tied the second canto at 7-7 after winning the net joust against Absin. The set continued on a deadlock until a monster block from Jett Gopio secured a three-point lead for the Blue and White, 13-10. Banking on the momentum, the Blue Eagles slowly picked up their defense while Batas and Salarzon took advantage with relentless kills from the wings, 16-10. Ateneo attackers continued their good form to keep the Soaring Falcons at bay while they attempted to catch the lead, 23-19. Soon after, Batas unloaded a powerful down-the-line hit to bring Ateneo to set point. It was Adamson’s attack error that granted the Blue and White the second set, 25-20.
[Set 2]
— Kristen C. Sison (@Kris_TheGUIDON) April 1, 2023
Absin goes above the net and releases an attack, which the Soaring Falcons cannot contain.
Ateneo 8 AdU 7#UAAPVolleyball pic.twitter.com/60tHMkqzSQ
Scoring with a block and a perfectly-timed attack to open the third set, Absin stretched Ateneo’s lead, four points to none. Despite Batas’ crucial spill of attack points for the team, the opposite spiker’s back-to-back errors coupled with Adamson’s dynamic offense handed five consecutive points to the Soaring Falcons, 7-11. A sneaky slide attack from Gopio ended the drought for Ateneo, but Adamson’s Evan Novillo punctured the Blue Eagle blockade for successive kills past the second timeout, 13-17. Despite the presence of the Batas-Pacinio powerhouse duo, the Blue Eagles suffered a three-point deficit against the Soaring Falcons’ reactive defense, 19-22. The Blue Eagles dropped the third canto after failing to keep up with Adamson’s speed of play on the offensive end, 19-25.
It was a back-and-forth exchange of points from both teams to welcome the fourth frame. Batas successfully spotted lapses in the Soaring Falcons’ defense and utilized smart tips to secure a lead for Ateneo, 9-7. Despite shaky floor defense, the Blue Eagles kept the lead thanks to perfect quick attack connections from setter Egie Magadia to Gopio. Towards the latter end of the set, Ateneo achieved a five-point lead boosted by kills from Salarzon and Batas. Ateneo endured Adamson’s persistent floor defense and speedy attacks as Salarzon and Pacinio extended the match to a fifth set by challenging Adamso’s receivers with varied kills, 25-23.
The final frame saw Adamson drawing first blood with a quick attack to rattle Ateneo’s defenders. However, the Blue Eagles ensured that the final stretch was in their hands, notching back-to-back points courtesy of Batas and Pacinio, 2-1. With the early moments of the set remaining tightly contested, the Blue Eagles slowly chipped away at the Soaring Falcons with Pacinio’s consecutive attacks, 10-8.
After a net touch by Ateneo, cutting their lead down to just one, an excellent sequence led to Blue Eagles being just one point shy of the victory. Salarzon’s monster block followed by errors from both teams set the stage for the match point, 14-10. A powerful crosscourt kill by Salarzon sealed the deal for Ateneo, putting away the Soaring Falcons, 15-10.
The Blue Eagles look to extend their winning streak as they face the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, on Wednesday, April 12, at 9:00 AM at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in the City of San Juan.
