THE ATENEO Lady Spikers defeated the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs in a dramatic five-set match to preserve their spotless record last December 15, Saturday, in The Arena at San Juan.
The first set started well for the Lady Eagles as they scored the first four points of the match care of NU’s unforced errors. Aggressive play by Dindin Santiago, however, helped NU overtake Ateneo, 16-14, by the second technical timeout. The Lady Bulldogs eventually took the first set, 25-16.
The game suddenly looked scary for Team Ateneo when veteran Jem Ferrer went down after an awkward landing from a block attempt. Ferrer was replaced by freshman Gizelle Tan for the setting duties as the former left the court. NU took advantage of the lineup change and kept the pressure up as Ateneo struggled in their receiving.
NU seemed to be in control of second set when they extended their lead, 19-12, forcing Ateneo head coach Roger Gorayeb to call for time. The timeout proved to be the necessary boost for the Lady Eagles as the rookie Tan gained confidence and distributed the ball well enough to help trim the NU lead to one, 22-21. At that point, it was an exchange of scoring by Ateneo and NU.
Alyssa Valdez led the Lady Spikers, but Myla Pablo and Santiago were too much for Ateneo to handle as Pablo took care of the second set by finishing it off, 32-30. The Lady Bulldogs were ready to go home with a win and Team Ateneo suddenly found themselves in a 2-0 hole.
The Lady Eagles remained calm despite trailing early, 8-5, in the first technical time out of the third set. Ferrer returned to play despite her injured ankle and provided the much needed spark for Ateneo. Ferrer set up her teammates well, helping Ateneo take the third set, 25-21. By then, the momentum was all in the Ateneo side.
The Blue and White started the fourth set on fire as everything was dropping for them. At one point, the Lady Eagles led 16-5, which completely took the air off the NU Lady Bulldogs. Ella De Jesus was a recipient of a couple of great sets by Ferrer, while Gretchen Ho and Dzi Gervacio played with hustle and energy as the Lady Eagles forced a fifth and final set, 25-13.
Trying to regain composure, NU started strong in the fifth pegging the score at 6-2 early on. Ateneo veterans Ferrer, Valdez and Fille Cainglet however, remained aggressive and played smart all throughout the final set. Pablo’s outstanding 21 big points was just not enough as Valdez topped hers with 28. In the end, Ateneo won the do-or-die set, 15-13, and completed a stellar comeback to remain undefeated, 4-0.
