THE ATENEO Women’s Volleyball Team (AWVT) endured their fourth setback of University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 following a straight-set defeat to the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, 20-25, 23-25, 21-25. The match was held earlier today at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Team Co-Captain AC Miner led the squad in scoring, accumulating 13 points from 11 kills, one block, and one ace. On the other hand, Angge Poyos roared with an impressive 19-point outing for UST after consistently penetrating the Blue Eagles’ defense.
Despite a fiery start from Poyos, Ateneo managed to force a 4-4 deadlock, primarily due to the Golden Tigresses’ errors. Yvana Sulit then steered a Blue Eagle run courtesy of a quick hit and service ace, 6-4. Supplementing the middle-blocker were seniors Lyann De Guzman and Miner, who hustled from the wings to build an 11-5 cushion.
Even with momentum on Blue and White’s side, their issues from the beginning of the set resurfaced. The shaky passing allowed Reg Jurado and Poyos to hound Ateneo’s back-row defense with cross-court hits to shift the momentum towards the Golden Tigresses, 21-15.
Adding to Ateneo’s woes, Sobe Buena exited the match at the backend of the set after an awkward landing. Coming off the bench, rookie Alexia Montoro attempted to rally her team back into the set with back-to-back spikes. However, Poyos eventually scored a point off the block to secure the first set for UST, 20-25.
Entering the second frame, the Kung Fu Reyes-mentored squad immediately carved out an imposing 9-4 lead, courtesy of Marga Altea’s quick attacks that challenged the Blue Eagles’ blocks.
Although Miner kept the set close with her variety of hits from the middle and the right pin, UST raged on with their jaw-dropping back-row attacks, 13-9, to the dismay of Ateneo.
Unwilling to lose another set, the Blue Eagles summoned a combination of aces, dinks, and spikes to take their first lead in the canto, 16-15.
Despite not accruing a single block, the Blue Eagles remained reactive on the offensive end, as the team eluded UST with another ace, 18-18. The momentum shift allowed Miner to erase the Golden Tigresses’ spike attempt, marking Ateneo’s first block of the match, 20-23.
This remarkable effort was followed by Sulit, whose serves did not allow UST to progress past match point. However, as an Ateneo comeback began to appear inevitable, UST’s Beth Hilongo silenced the Blue and White crowd with a deafening swipe, 25-23.
The España-based squad jumped off to a scorching start anew in the third set behind Cassie Carballo’s spiking prowess coupled with Pia Abbu’s precise blocks, 10-5. In a game of runs, however, Miner and De Guzman continued their relentless approach, allowing the Blue Eagles to keep the game close and cut the deficit to one, 11-12.
Utilizing the minutes given to them, second-unit players Zey Pacia and Montoro delivered crucial attacks to take a 17-16 lead. While both wing hitters opened the door for Ateneo to extend the match, the Blue Eagles’ failure to receive Poyos’ myriad of attacks allowed the Golden Tigresses to once again take control of the tempo, 19-22.
Ultimately, Ateneo fell victim to UST’s elite blocking performance as a Jurado denial over Montoro sealed the victory for the Black and Gold, 25-21.
The Blue and White’s struggles in the blocking department continued to hamper them in today’s contest as they only notched two denials compared to the Golden Tigresses’ 11 blocks.
The AWVT will look to snap out of their losing streak on March 15, Wednesday, at 3:00 PM against the De La Salle Lady Spikers in the same venue.
Box scores:
Ateneo (0): Miner – 13, De Guzman – 11, Montoro – 7, Sulit – 6, Chuatico – 3, Pacia – 3, Buena – 1
UST (3): Poyos – 19, Jurado – 14, Abbu – 13, Altea – 4, Plaza – 4, Hilongo – 3, Carballo – 2, Pepito – 1
Set scores:
Ateneo-UST: 20-25, 23-25, 21-25.
Current Standings (W-L):
- NU Lady Bulldogs (5-0)
- UST Golden Tigresses (5-1)
- FEU Lady Tamaraws (4-2)
- DLSU Lady Spikers (3-2)
- AdU Lady Falcons (3-2)
- UP Fighting Maroons (2-4)
- ATENEO Blue Eagles (1-4)
- UE Lady Red Warriors (0-6)
