THE ATENEO Lady Eagles emerged victorious against Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons in straight sets, 21-17, 21-19, in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 82 Women’s Beach Volleyball Tournament on Wednesday, October 2, at the Sands at SM by the Bay, Pasay City. Today’s results gave Team Captain Ponggay Gaston and rookie Roma Mae Doromal a 4-3 record and the last spot in the Final Four.

Gaston ignited the offense early for Ateneo with a drop ball in the middle. Doromal then stepped into the spotlight to score three consecutive points with her cross court attacks, 4-1. A 5-0 run was made by the Lady Eagles as they executed excellent defense, capturing all loop shots of AdU’s Gracelchen Ave and the attacks of Lady Falcon Chrislyn Uy in the middle. Ateneo led 14-8 coming out from the technical timeout (TTO) behind Gaston’s back-to-back aces. However, the Lady Falcons were unfazed with Ateneo’s match point, 20-15. They were able to comeback with a 4-0 run, but Gaston ended their rally and took the set with a powerful smash in the middle. 

The Blue and White tandem continued their defensive pattern in the second set to prevent the Lady Falcons from scoring. Teamwork was on display by the Lady Eagles as they scored alternately to form a 6-2 run. AdU kept firing cross-court attacks at Ateneo, challenging their defense to make it a tie game, 6-6. After the second TTO, Adamson attempted to snatch the lead again with a 4-0 run, forcing Ateneo to call out their only timeout, 20-19. Veteran Gaston stopped the bleeding and finished near the net, 21-19, to secure the set and match victory.

The Lady Eagles will face the undefeated University of Santo Tomas (7-0) Golden Tigresses in the first semi-finals round on Saturday, October 5, 8:00 AM, at the Sands at SM by the Bay in Pasay City. The losing team of this match will proceed to battle for third place.

Set Scores:

Ateneo-AdU: 21-17, 21-19