THE ATENEO Blue Eagles fell to the Philippine Air Force (PAF) Air Spikers in five thrilling sets, 14-25, 25-20, 26-28, 25-21, 10-15, in their fifth match of the Spikers’ Turf Open Conference on Sunday, September 29, at the Paco Arena in Manila City.
The result gave the Blue Eagles their first loss of the season and a 4-1 standing. Meanwhile, the Air Spikers move into the quarter finals with a twice-to-beat advantage.
Ateneo featured a new-look rotation composed of Ron Medalla, Sebastian Cuerva, Gian Glorioso, Jettlee Gopio, Lawrence Magadia, and Paulo Trinidad to account for the absence of Abai Llenos and Kurt Aguilar, who are competing in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 82 Men’s Beach Volleyball Tournament.
The Air Force Spikers used their experience against this new group to blitz an early 6-1 run in the first set, forcing Ateneo to substitute Trinidad for Lance De Castro, who is more used to receiving running services. PAF’s open spiker Fauzi Ismail kept the heat on the Ateneo defense, powering the Air Force Spikers to a 25-14 win.
In the second set, Ateneo found success against PAF’s defense by setting the ball nearer to the net, 12-11. However, the Blue Eagle defense was left wanting as the Air Spikers used combination plays to exploit gaps. Fortunately, Ateneo caught a break with a timely 4-0 run led by Glorioso and Medalla, 17-13. Chumason Njigha finished the set with a quick attack down the middle, 25-20.
PAF’s defense controlled proceedings in the third set, highlighted by back-to-back triple blocks. Njigha, Glorioso, and Medalla responded with three consecutive blocks of their own, 9-7. Errors plagued the Blue Eagles shortly after as they conceded a 6-0 run, but they managed to draw level at the death. PAF won the deuce after an attack on the sideline by Ismail followed by Kim Malabunga’s running spike, 28-26.
Ateneo bounced back early in the fourth set thanks to Trinidad’s impressive defense, but PAF’s Ismail and Malabunga quickly found a breakthrough with their combination plays. Later in the set, Ateneo adjusted their defense again, which spurred a 6-1 run to gain back the lead. A triple block by Ateneo forced a fifth set, 25-21.
In the deciding set, Alnakrin Abadilla emerged for the Air Force Spikers, who capitalized on his superior firepower, 5-10. The young Blue Eagles were unable to convert their attacks against PAF’s stingy defense. Ismail ended the match, 10-15.
The Blue Eagles will hope to bounce back in their next game against the Cignal HD Spikers at 5:00 PM, on Tuesday, October 8, at Paco Arena in Manila City.
Set Scores:
Ateneo-PAF: 14-25, 25-20, 26-28, 25-21, 10-15
