Rookie Valdez powers Ateneo past NU in women's volleyball

Rookie Alyssa Valdez produced 30 points to power Ateneo to a 25-7, 25-20, 17-25, 25-19 triumph against skidding National University in the 74th UAAP women's volleyball tournament on Saturday at The Arena in San Juan City. Ateneo, filled with a lot of scoring options, breezed past NU finishing the first set at 25-7, as multiple players received well for the Lady Spikers. Valdez, with her trademark spikes, took the scoring cudgels for the Lady Eagles in the opening frame while Gretchen Ho and Aillysse Nacachi controlled the net as they effectively foiled NU scoring machine Cai Nepomuceno. The Lady Bulldogs also played erratically on the defensive end with libero Eunice Galang the only one making key receptions. Ateneo did not slowed down in the second set with NU playing catch-up the entire frame. The Lady Bulldogs managed to threaten at 20-19 but Valdez, Fille Cainglet and Angelina Gervacio joined hands in giving the Lady Eagles a 25-20 second-set win. Nepomuceno then found her stride in the third set as NU’s team captain consistently found holes in the Ateneo defense. Galang anchored the NU defense with her superb reception frustrating the predictable combination plays for Valdez. The Lady Bulldogs took the third, 25-17, to avoid being shutout by the Lady Eagles. Ateneo, despite facing three-point deficit, recovered and went on to seal the win with a 25-19 tally in the fourth. Gervacio and Cainglet scored 13 and 10 points each for the Lady Eagles, who improved their record to 7-2. Nepomuceno scored a respectable 19 points in NU’s losing effort. The loss was the ninth straight for the Lady Bulldogs, who opened the season with a win over University of the Philippines. — JVP, GMA News