THE ATENEO-MOTOLITE Lady Eagles fell to the undefeated BanKo Perlas (BKP) Spikers in straight sets, 25-27, 19-25, 11-25, on Sunday, October 7 at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
In the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Open Conference, the Lady Eagles now hold a win-loss record of 2-1.
Head Coach Oliver Almadro fielded a starting lineup featuring Bea De Leon, Maddie Madayag, Kat Tolentino, Vanie Gandler, Kim Gequillana, Deanna Wong, and Dani Ravena at libero. Rookies Sam Fanger, Bela Peralta, Erika Raagas, and Jaja Maraguinot also suited up to provide a spark of the bench.
Tolentino was the team’s top scorer with ten points despite having an inefficient 23.81% spiking success rate which mirrored Ateneo-Motolite’s 22.72% rate in the contest. In comparison, BKP was successfully spiking at a rate of 34.71%, courtesy of Nicole Tiamzon and Kathy Bersola, who combined for nine blocks against the Lady Eagles.
1st set
The Blue and White started off the match well with an early run, but they eventually lost the lead by the first technical timeout (TTO), 7-8. The game was close heading into the second TTO and a net touch violation afterwards tied the score, 16-16. Late into the set, a kill through the block by Tolentino tied the scores, 21-21. The Katipunan-based squad looked poised to win it as they reached set point with a three-point lead, 24-22. However, the Perlas Spikers fought back with a 5-1 scoring run to take the opening set, 25-27.
[1st set] An attack error by Tolentino surrenders the set.
Ateneo 25 BKP 27#PVL pic.twitter.com/cGIHF8Jxqk
— James Gavina (@James_TheGUIDON) October 7, 2018
2nd set
It was a similar story in the second set, with the teams exchanging points heading into the first TTO, 7-8. BKP held on to the lead upon entering the second TTO thanks to a service error by Gandler, 15-16. A 4-0 run capped off by a service ace put the Perlas Spikers ahead by four, 16-20. This lead proved to be insurmountable as the Lady Eagles surrendered the set with a service error, 19-25.
[2nd set] A service error by De Leon ends the set and gives the Perlas Spikers the 2-0 advantage.
Ateneo 19 BKP 25#PVL pic.twitter.com/ZAsttA0Uk5
— James Gavina (@James_TheGUIDON) October 7, 2018
3rd set
The third set began horribly for the Lady Eagles as a 5-0 run by their BKP counterparts forced Coach Oliver Almadro to call an early timeout. It was a service error by Dzi Gervacio that stopped the bleeding, 3-14. A 4-0 Perlas Spikers run was halted by a dump by Wong off a chance ball, 5-19. The Blue and White tried to rally back, but it was too little too late, as a quick that bounced off the net ended the match, 11-25.
[3rd set] A long rally ends in a lucky kill off the net.
Ateneo 11 BKP 25#PVL pic.twitter.com/yBb2qktzN1
— James Gavina (@James_TheGUIDON) October 7, 2018
After the game, BKP Head Coach Ariel Dela Cruz emphasized the influence of the first set’s outcome to the overall result. “Yung first set crucial ‘yun, kung sino mananalo doon, malamung iyon mananalo sa game (The first set is crucial because whoever wins there is most likely going to win the game),” commented BKP Head Coach Ariel Dela Cruz.
The next game for the Ateneo-Motolite Lady Eagles will be against Iriga City-Navy at 4:00 PM, Saturday, October 13 in the Filoil Flying V Centre, San Juan City.
Set Score
Ateneo-BKP: 25-27, 19-25, 11-25
Box Scores
Ateneo: Tolentino – 11, Madayag – 10, De Leon – 6, Wong – 4, Gandler – 3, Gequillana – 2
BKP: Tiamzon – 17, Gervacio – 14, Bersola –11, Dacoron – 6, Ferrer – 5, Villanueva – 3, Doromal – 3
