THE ATENEO Blue Eagles triumphed over the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers (UST) in four sets, 22-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-21 on Saturday, March 18 at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan City.
The Blue Eagles continue their winning streak in the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 79 Men’s Volleyball tournament with a 10-0 record.
Reigning MVP Marck Espejo began the match with a cross-court attack that split the defense. Head coach Oliver Almadro chose to use the first set to experiment with a new rotation which seemed to be working in their favor, as a successful quick attack by Gian Glorioso gave his team the early lead (5-2). Unfortunately, the lack of floor defense in the rotation allowed UST to go on a 6-1 scoring run and they led by two at the first technical time-out (6-8). The score lines remained close until substitute Ron Medalla made an attack error that gave UST the four-point lead (17-21). The Blue Eagles attempted to fight back, but, a UST lob over the blockers ended the first set for the Growling Tigers (22-25).
The second set started out close and by the first technical time-out, UST was leading by one (7-8). In the rally before the time-out, there was a questionable no-call on what was an alleged double-touch and there were protests by the Blue Eagles and the coaching staff. Yellow cards for misconduct were shown to Ish Polvorosa, Manuel Sumanguid, and Coach Almadro. This would not shake the Blue Eagles, as they went on a 9-3 scoring run, highlighted by Tony Koyfman’s denial of a UST back-row attack (16-11). UST attempted a comeback late in the set, but it was too little too late as Marck Espejo ended the set with an attack off Sumagaysay’s block (25-23).
Ateneo dominated the third set and an ace by Espejo gave his team the huge lead at the first technical time-out (8-3). Attack errors and poor receiving plagued UST for majority of the set and a cross-court attack by Ron Medalla finished the third set (25-13) to give the Blue Eagles the one-set lead over UST.
UST fought back hard in the fourth set and even earned an early lead. The Katipunan-based squad retaliated and a quick attack by Rex Intal tied the game at 8-all. It would remain a close back-and-forth battle until a late run and a back-row attack by Espejo gave Ateneo the four-point lead at the second technical time-out (16-12). Ateneo never gave up the lead and Polvorosa finished the match by spiking it himself (25-21).
Marck Espejo made a strong case for the MVP award by scoring a season-high of 27 points. He earned 10 excellent digs, 12 excellent receptions, and three service aces. He is also the only Blue Eagle to score in double digits this game, as the next top scorer is Rex Intal with eight points.
“First set, we gambled but we did not execute,” said Coach Almadro on the team’s performance in the first set loss. “I’m proud of their resiliency, they bounced back.”
The head coach also mentioned how he values winning the last game of the season over going 14-0 when asked about the possible sweep. “My instinct is, we practice hard just to earn a wrong call,” explains Coach Almadro as to why he is very vocal on the sidelines. He also added how he wants the officials to have better transparency and communication. “I apologize to everybody,” added Coach Almadro on his yellow cards and conduct during games.
Ateneo’s next opponent is the Adamson University Soaring Falcons on March 22, Wednesday, at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan City.
Box Scores
Ateneo: Espejo-27, Intal-8, Koyfman-7, Polvorosa-7, Baysa-6, Villanueva-5, Glorioso-5, Medalla-1
UST: Medina-13, Jose-11, Sumagaysay-9, Carodan-7, Bautista-5, Buro-2, Icalina-2, Tajanlangit-1
The Ateneo Blue Eagles triumphed over the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers (UST) in four sets, 22-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-21
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