EXTENDING THEIR winning streak to five games, the Ateneo Lady Eagles took out the Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons in four sets, 25-8, 22-25, 25-16, 25-10 in Season 81 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Women’s Volleyball Tournament on Sunday, March 13, at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.

Head Coach Oliver Almadro started the usual troop of Deanna Wong, Kat Tolentino, Maddie Madayag, Bea De Leon, Ponggay Gaston, Jules Samonte, and Kim Gequillana at libero. Rookies Vanie Gandler, Jaja Maraguinot, and Erika Raagas would also make appearances later on in the game.

Topping the scoreboard was Gaston, who tallied 16 points from a whopping six service aces and 10 spikes. Veterans Tolentino and De Leon notched four kill blocks each en route to 15 and 14 points, respectively.

Despite a slow start, the Blue and White would go on a monsterous 17-1 run to overwhelm their counterparts, 17-5. The flustered Lady Falcons could not connect on their spikes and were constantly faced with an impenetrable Madayag-Tolentino wall. Ateneo would not look back, taking the set with back-to-back kills from Gaston, 25-8.

With the Lady Falcons still searching for their groove, the Katipunan-based side came up with the early lead in the second set, 5-2. AdU, however, would find their answer through Team Captain Christine Soyud who helped her team equalize the set, 11-11. From there, both teams traded points, with De Leon and Lady Falcon Joy Dacoron exchanging attacks. At this point, Gandler, Maraguinot, and Raagas briefly ran the court trying to push the game back in Ateneo’s favor as the set remained close at 18-20. AdU eventually closed out the second set, 22-25, after Chiara Permentilla’s cross court kill.

Remaining focused and determined, De Leon erupted to start the third set after nailing two spikes and two blocks in quick succession while back-to-back aces from Gaston would push their lead further. Despite a short Lady Falcons run, Ateneo would head into the second technical timeout with the lead after Wong scored by avoiding a joust, 16-8. Dacoron tried to ignite a run to equalize the set, but veterans Gaston and De Leon continued ransacking the court with spikes and kill blocks. Eventually, the Katipunan-based squad took the third set after Tolentino tipped in a loose ball, 25-16.

A back and forth of attacks from both teams started the fourth set, but Ateneo would slowly pull ahead courtesy of consistent scoring from Gaston. The Lady Eagles’ movements were on point as AdU could not adjust to a powerful battery of attacks from De Leon and Tolentino which gave the Blue and White a huge advantage, 14-7. Much like the first set, a massive run was the winning factor as opponent errors combined with spikes from Madayag and Gaston would fuel a 9-0 run for Ateneo. Gaston would seal the win after taking match point with an off the block kill, 25-10.

When asked about their five-game winning streak, De Leon revealed that she did not notice that the team was already at the top of the ladder and stressed how the team treats each game like the championship. “Every game you come in [and] you don’t look at the standings,” she said. “Every game you come in—it’s a must win for us regardless [of our standing].”

The Lady Eagles, who now have a tournament record of 5-1, will have their last match of the first round against the National University Lady Bulldogs on Sunday, March 16 at 2:00 PM at the same venue.

Set Score:

Ateneo-AdU: 25-8, 22-25, 25-16, 25-10