THE ATENEO Blue Eagles unleashed deadly offensive plays en route to a victory over the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws, 25-22, 25-13, 25-23, earlier today at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena in Pasay City.
Opening the second round of the eliminations with a win, the Blue Eagles now hold a 4-4 record in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 84 Women’s Volleyball Tournament standings.
To start the first set, Ateneo’s Lyann de Guzman headed the steed as she maneuvered from both the outside and open, 6-2. After a technical timeout from the Lady Tamaraws, the Blue Eagles were unable to find their offensive rhythm and stumbled at the floor defense. Yet, Ateneo faltered as back-to-back errors from the Blue and White gave FEU their first lead of the set, 10-8.
With the blockers of the Lady Tamaraws starting to fortify at the net, the Blue Eagles struggled to get their attacks across. Head Coach Oliver Almadro called a technical timeout to remind the players to believe in their capabilities and challenge the blockers. Following the timeout, de Guzman got consecutive points by bursting through the FEU defense, 17-14. The gold and green squad responded with a 4-0 run of their own via Kary Truz taking control of the middle.
In response to the run, Alexis Miner and Faith Nisperos showed off their spiking prowess to give the lead back to Ateneo, 21-18. Looking to close the set, Erika Raagas found a donut hole and fooled FEU’s defense to secure the set for the Blue Eagles, 25-22.
In the second set, the Blue Eagles continued to dominate the Lady Tamaraws with their powerful hits. It was a strong start to the set for Miner, as she carried the team to an early 8-2 lead. Then it was Nisperos who took over for the Katipunan-based squad, as her near-unstoppable jump serves gave the Blue and White a 7-0 run. With the score sitting at a comfortable 15-3 lead for Ateneo, FEU failed to catch up to the Blue Eagles, even despite multiple errors from the Blue and White. The second set was practically a done deal as Nisperos drilled into the FEU defense, to hand Ateneo the set win at 25-13.
Given a commanding 2-0 set lead, the Blue Eagles entered the third set confidently as they continued to outscore the Lady Tamaraws early in the set. Both teams remained neck-and-neck in the set’s first half, but the Katipunan squad eventually pulled away as they scored from different areas of the court. Despite Ateneo leading 15-8, FEU took advantage of the Blue Eagles’ complacency and went on a 5-0 run, keeping them close at 13-17 in favor of Ateneo. From the sidelines, FEU outside hitters Rossell Asis and Chenie Tagaod attempted to extend the match only to be let down by team service errors accompanied by strong attacks from Nisperos and Raagas.
It was another offensive masterclass for Faith Nisperos, who was a key contributor to Ateneo’s stellar showing against the FEU Lady Tamaraws, recording 19 points. With strong performances of their own, de Guzman and Miner followed suit with eight and nine markers, respectively.
The Blue Eagles will face the top-seeded National University Lady Bulldogs next at 12:30 PM, on Saturday, May 28 at the MOA Arena.
Set Score:
Ateneo-FEU: 25-22, 25-13, 25-23
Box Scores:
Ateneo: Nisperos – 19, Miner – 9, De Guzman – 8, Gandler – 7, Narit – 5, Raagas – 5, Maraguinot – 2, Ildefonso – 1
FEU: Kiseo – 9, Tagaod – 6, Asis J. – 4, Truz – 4, Asis A. – 2, Fernandez – 2, Monares – 1
