ON THE last day of the elimination round, the Ateneo Blue Eagles prevailed against the Adamson University (AdU) Soaring Falcons, but lost their knock-out game against the Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws on Thursday, October 12 at SM Sands by the Bay in Pasay City.
The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Men’s Beach Volleyball lineup consisted of Marck Espejo, Karl Baysa, and John Rivera, who played the role of the reserve player. This is the last season for Espejo and Baysa as they have reached the maximum number of eligible playing years in the UAAP.
Ateneo vs AdU
With rain pouring down during the entire duration of the match, Ateneo pulled away early, after a kill by Espejo off the block gave his team the three-point lead, 6-3. The Blue Eagles maintained the lead all throughout the set, with an off-the-block kill by Baysa widening the deficit to eight late into the set, 17-9. Adamson was able to make a run, but Baysa eventually finished the set with a cross court hit, 21-15.
The Blue Eagles had the lead early in the second, but an attack error by Baysa tied the game, 5-5. The Ateneo tandem stole the lead at the technical timeout thanks to a wipe off the block by Espejo, 11-10. Multiple errors by Adamson, coupled with good attacks by the Blue Eagles, allowed them to break away and go on a run to close out the set and the match, 21-17.
Ateneo vs FEU
Coming off a three-set loss to the University of Santo Tomas (UST), the Tamaraws went on an early run, but were grounded by errors, 6-6. FEU broke away, however, and a spike by Jeremiah Barricade to the open corner gave his team the four-point lead, 12-16. Errors prevented Ateneo from mounting a comeback as FEU took the set after an attack error by Baysa, 15-21.
The Katipunan-based tandem continued to struggle in the second set after a wide attack by Baysa had them down by two, 6-8. Espejo tried to keep his team in the game with his attacks, but his service error put the deficit to five, 15-20. Jude Garcia ultimately ended the set, 16-21, to eliminate the Blue Eagles from the competition.
Set Scores
Ateneo vs AdU: 21-15, 21-17
Ateneo vs FEU: 15-21, 16-21
