Anything slapped with an Ateneo – La Salle label gives it some competitive zing, be it an intellectual debate or a sell-out basketball game. In the second semester, the drama and the rivalry extend to volleyball, where both teams are heavy with tension.

First, there’s the winning streak that the menacing Taft contingent holds against their competitors from Katipunan. The streak traces back to Charo Soriano’s last playing year. Last year, the ladies in green booted the blue crew en route to a finals spot against the University of Sto. Tomas Growling Tigresses. Ateneo had a fair chance against UST after the former defeated the latter in the second round, but La Salle stole any hopes of an AdMU – UST match-up, and went on to take the Season 73 volleyball crown.

Second, the squads’ team captains will be the rivalry’s new faces, while familiar ties remain. The league’s ace libero, Melissa Gohing, was supposed to go to Ateneo until she left for DLSU. Ateneo’s Jem Ferrer, the league’s premium setter, used to be her teammate back in Hope Christian High School.

Third, Ateneo faces its toughest battle yet without Head Coach Roger Gorayeb, who sustained injuries in a scuffle after a misunderstanding with an NCAA team’s basketball players.

In front of a dominantly green-shirted, sell-out crowd, there was so much on the line for both rivaling teams, but the defending champions proved why they were able to go all the way last season. After four grueling sets, the De La Salle Lady Spikers reigned supreme as they handed the Ateneo Lady Spikers their first loss of the season on December 3, at the FilOil Flying V Arena.

Solid all-around play from Abigail Marano, Cha Cruz and emerging Lady Spiker Michelle Gumabao—who went for a combined 48 points—kept things rolling for DLSU, while the erratic Ateneo defense consistently faltered in the last few possessions.

The first set was a ball for Ateneo. Although La Salle would hit the ground running, Ateneo managed to catch up through bursts of offense. With La Salle leading 12-6, Ateneo came up with a seven-point spurt, 13-12, and another spurt of five points, 18-13. La Salle, constantly shuffling its court personnel in the first, found no stability while Ateneo’s attacks flamed them in a 25-21 first set drubbing.

In the succeeding sets, however, La Salle Coach Ramil de Jesus would find the right rotation that would put away the game. With their height and wingspans, Gumabao and Marano neutralized any offensive blitz Ateneo attempted.

After chasing down the lead, Ateneo caught themselves breathing down La Salle’s necks in the second set. Trailing La Salle for as much as eight points, the blue side stared at a three-point deficit, 22-19. The comeback however, was stunted by La Salle’s lengthy defense while defensive lapses started to hound Ateneo. La Salle swiped the set 25-22.

The next two sets would go the same route for the Ateneo side, as the lead see-sawed in the first few possessions La Salle would ultimately pull away. Though Ateneo persistently tried to reduce the deficit, they committed far too many costly defensive blunders.

Save for the quality of volleyball that both teams exhibited, errors marred the otherwise overwhelming episodes of back-and-forth rallies. Service errors, rotation errors and interference errors were all around the arena as both teams continue to find their rhythm in the beginning of the season.

Marano led the Taft-based Lady Spikers with 18 points, followed by Gumabao with 16 and team captain Cruz with 14 points. Fille Cainglet would dole out another MVP-worthy performance with 24 points, with 19 from spikes and four from blocks. Team Ateneo’s new offensive weapon Alyssa Valdez managed 10 points in an otherwise volatile performance while Ferrer made 45 sets. Denise Lazaro led the game in digs with 13.

Coach Gorayeb’s was nowhere to in the playing court as he was in the hospital, nursing some injuries sustained after getting involved in a brawl. The said brawl was between the San Beda’s men’s basketball team and the San Sebastian College – Recoletos volleyball team, of which Gorayeb is also a head coach.

Ateneo next face the NU Lady Spikers on December 11, 3:30 PM at the FilOil Flying V Arena.

Set scores: 25-21, 22-25, 18-25, 21-25