THE ATENEO Blue Eagles cruised to an easy win in straight sets against the Centro Escolar University (CEU) Scorpions, 25-17, 25-19, 25-14, in the Spikers’ Turf Open Conference on September 19 at the Paco Arena in Manila.

Chu Njigha, Ron Medalla, and Gian Glorioso combined for 38 points. Njigha was named player of the game for spiking with a 66.67% success rate as well as tallying four blocks and two service aces. The team registered 20 less dig attempts than CEU, proof of Ateneo’s excellent net defense in today’s outing.

A few mistakes by the Blue Eagles kept the score close at the start of the first set, but a block by Glorioso gave them a two-point lead entering the first technical timeout (TTO), 8-6. A scoring run later on stretched Ateneo’s lead to five by the second TTO, 16-11. The CEU Scorpions nfailed to keep the Blue Eagles at bay as Njigha and Medalla feasted on a porous net defense. Njigha took match point with a kill block, 25-17.

The CEU Scorpions led early in the second set, but the Blue Eagles quickly fought back to tie the score. It was a close battle until the second TTO when CEU surrendered consecutive points due to attack errors, 16-14. Glorioso’s blocking and Medalla’s spiking proved to be a problem for CEU, and the latter eventually finished the set with a kill off-the-block, 25-19.

The third set featured an unorthodox lineup with Glorioso replacing Kurt Aguilar at opposite while Basti Cuerva replaced Llenos at open spiker. Rookie Jettlee Gopio held middle blocker position. Head Coach Timmy Sto. Tomas blooded this new lineup to account for the future absences of Aguilar and Llenos, who will be participating in the UAAP Beach Volleyball tournament.

Ateneo built an early lead in the third set off of errors by CEU and bombardment from the service line, 8-2. Glorioso playing as a wing spiker created new offensive options and worked wonders for the Ateneo offense. A strong quick by Njigha propelled the lead to seven, 16-9. With the game in hand, members of the bench were given playing time. An attack error by CEU ended the match, 25-14.

The Blue Eagles are set to face the EasyTrip Road Spikers on Sunday, September 22, at 1:00 PM at the same venue. A win here secures a spot in the quarterfinals.

Set Scores

Ateneo-CEU: 25-17, 25-19, 25-14