THE ATENEO Blue Eagles started their round two stint in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 tournament with a five-set victory over the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 15-25, 25-23, 27-25, 30-32, 16-14. The match was held earlier today at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
This win puts the Blue Eagles at a 3-5 win-loss record, setting a three-way tie at fifth place with the Adamson Soaring Lady Falcons and UP. Fueled by their momentum from the end of the first round, the victory also marks Ateneo’s first winning streak in Season 87.
Team Captain Lyann De Guzman led the way for the Blue Eagles, posting a triple-double performance with 25 points from 23 attacks, 17 excellent receptions, and 14 excellent digs. Meanwhile, AC Miner also contributed 19 markers for the team.
The Katipunan co-tenants entered an early slugfest, exchanging lead changes with UP for a slim 6-5 advantage after back-and-forth rallies. However, Kiane Olango and Kacey Doering’s perfectly placed swipes gave the Fighting Maroons a 6-0 run for more breathing room, 12-6.
Failing to contain Irah Jaboneta and Joan Monnares’ left pin actions, Ateneo never recovered from UP’s scoring run as they fell into a 12-21 hole. The Blue Eagles also suffered from piling errors as they conceded 10 points off miscues in the opening set.
While De Guzman momentarily cut the deficit with powerful spikes, 15-21, Doering’s quick attacks prevented Ateneo from mounting a comeback. The Fighting Maroon eventually put the set to bed with a tip from the middle, 25-15.
Insistent on retaliation, Taks Fujimoto drew first blood for the Blue Eagles in the second set with a service ace. Despite their opening statement, the Blue and White still struggled to string together a good rhythm, committing multiple errors to hand UP a 3-2 advantage.
While the Blue Eagles attempted to readjust their pace, the Fighting Maroons exemplified their offensive and serving prowess, with a service ace by Joan Monares putting UP up 8-3. Recognizing Ateneo’s precarious situation, Miner stepped up with an off-the-block kill to cut down the deficit, 4-9. With UP committing a number of errors, Zey Pacia and De Guznan contributed to Ateneo’s run with timely hits to close the gap at 8-10.
Riding their newfound momentum, De Guzman took the reins and exhibited varied hits to give Ateneo the lead, 12-11. Yvana Sulit sustained the Blue and White’s fight with a down-the-line attack, 16-14. In spite of their excellent play, Ateneo once again became infected with a plague of errors and fumbled their advantage, 17-19.
Determined to reclaim the upper hand, Miner converted consecutive kills to make it a one-point game, 19-20. To Ateneo’s advantage, the Fighting Maroons also committed crucial errors of their own, gifting the Blue Eagles a second-frame win at 25-23.
Attempting to set the tone in the third set, Olango immediately helped build a 7-4 cushion for UP courtesy of a block on De Guzman and a dink. Retaliating against the Diliman-based unit, Sulit’s quick hits from the middle made it difficult for the Fighting Maroons to pull away, 8-11. Alongside De Guzman, Alexia Montoro also allowed Ateneo to stay within striking distance, 14-16. The Blue Eagles’ efforts eventually paved the way for Fujimoto to force a 21-all deadlock with a service ace.
In the backend of the set, the Diliman-based squad took advantage of Ateneo’s shaky passing to put themselves at set point, 24-22. As UP was one point away from taking the third frame, Miner delivered a down-the-line kill and a block to extend the set, 24-24. De Guzman then shifted the tide towards the Blue Eagles’ favor with a service ace, 25-24, but Niña Ytang was quick to counter with a block to once again tie the set, 25-25.
Refusing to let their momentum go to waste, Fujimoto orchestrated a running attack for Sulit to give Ateneo the 26-25 lead. The tightly contested sequence was then capped off by a miscalculated freeball from UP, allowing Ateneo to notch a 2-1 set advantage, 26-24.
Despite coming from a successful extended set, the Blue Eagles were overpowered by the Fighting Maroons’ defensive proficiency at the onset of the fourth frame, 0-3. Ateneo’s scoreless run only halted after Miner converted a down-the-line attack to cut the deficit, 2-4.
As Ateneo made up for their errors, Zey Pacia aided the Blue Eagles in offense with an off-the-block kill to make it a three-point margin, 3-6. Despite Jihan Chuatico’s off-the-block attack that cut the gap to two at 6-8, Ateneo fell prey to Ytang’s masterful offense, leading to a 7-10 deficit.
Countering UP’s dominant attacking in the middle, De Guzman and Miner delivered consecutive kills for the Blue Eagles to retake the lead, 11-10.
Despite Ateneo’s efforts to maintain a comfortable distance, 17-13, UP’s Irah Jaboneta unleashed a flurry of attacks to crawl back into the game and make it as close as two, 19-21. Undeterred by Doering’s attempt to steal the advantage, Miner countered with an attack of her own to reach a 22-all standoff.
As the stakes continued to rise, both teams relentlessly fought to break the deuce. Ytang came into UP’s offense, unleashing varied attacks at 26-25. However, the Fighting Maroon committed a net touch that tied the game for Ateneo. De Guzman unleashed every force in her arsenal to keep the Blue Eagles afloat with varied attacks, 28-27. However, unable to recover from exhaustion, De Guzman committed a costly error, leading to a Doering rejection from the middle that sealed the set in UP’s favor, 32-30.
Entering the deciding frame with a short-handed Ateneo rotation looking fatigued, Joan Monares found success in attacking the Blue and White’s defense. Despite UP’s early blitz, Pacia stepped up to keep Ateneo in the running in the final frame, 6-6. The middle blocking tandem of Chuatico and Sulit, alongside De Guzman, then catapulted a 4-0 run for the Loyola Heights-based unit, 10-6.
However, in a similar fashion to the previous sets, UP managed to climb back into the set and claim match point behind Ytang’s myriad of attacks, 14-12.
Facing the pressure of dropping another five-set affair, Pacia connected on two long kills to once again extend the contest at 14-all.
Responding to their struggles in the first round, Ateneo displayed defensive improvements when it mattered most, saving multiple possessions during crucial exchanges.
The Blue Eagles’ hustle translated to two UP errors during rallies which ultimately handed Ateneo the hard-fought victory, 16-14.
The AWVT will look to make it three straight Season 87 wins as they confront the Adamson Soaring Lady Falcons on March 29, Saturday, 1:00 PM at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Box scores:
Ateneo (3): De Guzman – 23, Miner – 17, Pacia – 13 Chuatico – 12, Sulit – 11, Fujimoto – 2, Montoro – 1
UP (2): Ytang – 24, Jaboneta – 20, Monares – 18, Doering – 15, Olango – 13
Set scores:
Ateneo-UP: 15-25, 25-23, 27-25, 30-32, 16-14
Current Standings (W-L):
- NU Lady Bulldogs (7-0)
- DLSU Lady Spikers (5-2)
- UST Golden Tigresses (5-2)
- FEU Lady Tamaraws (4-3)
- AdU Lady Falcons (3-5)
- ATENEO Blue Eagles (3-5)
- UP Fighting Maroons (3-5)
- UE Lady Red Warriors (0-8)
