UAAP Volleyball: Lady Archers pull off sweep, trump Lady Eagles

The Ateneo de Manila University Lady Spikers stared down wistfully on their half of the court. In the other half, there was much smiling and fist-pumping. Abigail Marano scored a team-high 20 points on 19 spikes as the De La Salle University Lady Spikers (14-0) survived the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Spikers (11-3) after five sets, Sunday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan, in the final eliminations round game of the 74th UAAP women’s volleyball tournament. A sellout crowd in factions of green and blue filled The Arena, as La Salle looked to keep their record spotless. The number-two seeded Ateneo Lady Spikers (11-2) had a chance to keep the Lady Spikers from accomplishing the sweep and their 25th straight win, but to no avail. The Taft-based Lady Spikers took sets two, four and five, losing the first set due to rare defensive mix-ups, and losing the third due to a blistering display of offense from Ateneo’s assortment of scorers. The Ateneo Lady Spikers mainly drew contributions from Alyssa Valdez and Fille Cainglet, who both scored 16 points in a free-flowing Ateneo offense. La Salle’s defense, however, would gain traction in the fourth set, as Ateneo struggled to put up points on the board due to La Salle’s excellent reception and timely blocking. Rookie Mika Reyes and junior Michelle Gumabao towered for De La Salle, preventing Ateneo’s spikes. Libero Melissa Gohing also logged more time than usual, making key receptions in the process. Marano opened the last set with three straight points and Ateneo struggled to get back on its feet on both ends of the floor as an error closed the set for De La Salle, 15-7. Marano was named Player of the Game after scoring 20 points, followed by super-senior Cha Cruz with 19 of her own. Lady Eagles Valdez and Cainglet scored 16 apiece in a losing effort. The sweep gave De La Salle University a thrice-to-beat advantage heading to the finals, as well as two weeks of rest, as the Final Four will be played in a stepladder format. Ateneo on the other hand, gained a twice-to-beat advantage after finishing the season at 11-3, despite the loss. A playoff, forced by an FEU Lady Tamaraws win and an Adamson University Lady Falcons loss last Saturday, will be played Monday between the two sides, to determine the opponent of the number-three seeded UST Growling Tigresses. - AMD, GMA News SET SCORES: 25-18, 14-25, 25-21, 19-25, 7-15