V-League: Ateneo, Adamson get first semis wins

(Updated 8:23pm) It was a day for the birds, as the Ateneo Lady Eagles and the Adamson Lady Falcons both drew first blood in their best-of-three semifinals series against the UST Lady Tigresses and the NU Lady Bulldogs, Tuesday at the PhilSports Arena, as part of the Shakey's V-League postseason.

In a rematch of last year’s finals, the Ateneo Lady Eagles defeated the UST Golden Tigresses in four sets, 20-25, 25-16, 29-27 and 25-14.

Fresh from surviving their quarterfinal five-setter against the University of Perpetual Help System Dalta Lady Altas, the UST Tigresses had gained all the momentum entering the match. They were also looking to avenge their three-set loss against the Lady Eagles in the elimination round.

Behind the performances of Aiza Maizo and Maika Ortiz, coupled with great support from the likes of Jessey De Leon, Carmela Tunay and Pamela Lastimosa, UST was able to barrage the Lady Eagles in the first set, claiming it 25-20.

Ateneo did not allow the surging Tigresses to gain complete control of the match though, as the already potent duo of Alyssa Valdez and Rachel Ann Daquis saw former San Sebastian guest player Jeng Bualee added. The trio clicked in the second set, scoring from a variety of angles to get a slim 8-6 by the first technical timeout of the second set.

The trio continued their offensive display, forcing UST into a number of errors, to extend their lead to 16-10. With key plays from Fille Cainglet and Marge Tejada, the Lady Eagles easily equalized things with by a margin of 25-16.

The Tigresses bounced back in the third set with Aiza Maizo giving UST a quick 3-0 lead. Valdez and Bualee however rallied the Lady Eagles back in front, 14-11.

UST however put their resiliency on display, getting sparks from Pamela Lastimosa and Carmela Tunay to go on top anew, 17-16. The Tigresses then reached set point at 24-22, only for Valdez to deliver under pressure, as she scored two straight to tie the game at 24-all.

The Tigresses took set point anew, 25-24, but an illegal back-row attack call on UST forged another deadlock at 25-all, and drew both cheers and jeers from from the crowd.

The back-and-forth affair continued, as UST leaned on the relentless Maizo to pierce the Ateneo defense. The set remained deadlocked at 27-all, before Ateneo pulled away for good. Cainglet, Bualee, and Valdez found their own way of delivering for their team, but it was Daquis who clinched the win with a deep, down-the-line attack to make it 29-27 in favor of the Lady Eagles.

The extended set won by Ateneo sucked the air out of the Tigresses as the fourth set became an Alyssa Valdez show. Valdez at one point scored four straight for Ateneo, to give the Lady Eagles an 18-8 advantage. Despite crowd favorite Maruja Banaticla entering the fourth set, her presence on the court was not enough to get the Tigresses in a rhythm. Ateneo went on to prevail in dominating fashion, via a 25-14 tally.
 
Alyssa Valdez led all scorers with 25 points, followed by new addition Jeng Bualee who garnered 19. Rachel Ann Daquis and Fille Cainglet chimed in with 13 and 10 markers, respectively.

UST drew 14 from Carmela Tunay, backed-up by 13 from Maika Ortiz and 12 from Aiza Maizo.

Jem Ferrer had 38 excellent sets to lead Ateneo to victory.


Game two was another UAAP match-up, which saw the Adamson Lady Falcons finally strike a loss onto the record of the NU Lady Bulldogs, as the former survived a five-set duel 22-25, 25-18, 25-19, 22-25, 15-13.

The Lady Falcons had a quick start in the first set with a 6-3 lead. Guest player Angela Benting was in her usual scoring groove, as the entire team came out aggressive.

Aiko Urdas however retaliated with precise serving, to put NU up at 10-7. The  Santiago sisters, Jaja and Dindin, then picked up the offense for the Lady Bulldogs, but it was Benting who captured the crowd’s favor, as she would deliver point after point care of her bullet-like spikes. With Pau Soriano backing her up with front row attacks the Lady Falcons managed to regain the lead at 19-18. ??Unfortunately for Adamson, their pace backfired, as their overly aggressive strategy caused multiple errors on their part. Rubie De Leon took advantage of the situation with a service ace that gave the Lady Bulldogs the set at 25-22.

NU struggled in the second set as a couple of service errors were enough for the Lady Falcons to grab an 8-4 lead by the first technical timeout. With Faye Guevara contributing for Adamson with her well-timed blocks, the Lady Falcons were able to extend their lead to 16-9.

The Lady Bulldogs rallied back to within two, 17-15, but their efforts fell short, as Adamson benefited from a small lift from Amanda Villanueva and their overall consistency on defense. Their excellent hustle for digs and blocks gave the Lady Falcons the second set at 25-18.

Shiela Pineda was on target in the third as she was able to give the Lady Falcons an early 8-5 lead. The Lady Bulldogs struggled to regain their usual dominant groove as Adamson found themselves on top at 13-7.

The whole set was an Angela Benting scoring exhibition, as she was able to gain points for her team via every aspect of the game. She attacked the defense, provided huge blocks, and was consistent in the service zone, with not even the tower-like blocking of the Santiago sisters containing her explosive spikes. Adamson eventually took the set at 25-19.

The frustrated Lady Bulldogs were still unable to capture a solid advantage against the Lady Falcons, trailing at the first technical timeout by 8-7, a margin that their unforced errors and outside attacks extended to 13-10.

Fortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, a couple of missed attempts did not stop Dindin Santiago from attacking strong. Santiago was able to turn the set around as they gained a five-point advantage at 21-16. Carmina Aganon scored two huge crucial points down the stretch, at 24-21 and 25-22, to force a fifth and final set.

Despite struggling in the majority of the match, the Lady Bulldogs picked the perfect time to recapture their unstoppable form. They started the fifth set with a 6-3 advantage and were able to extend it to 9-4.

Regardless of the lead however, Angela Benting did not lose a step, as she powered her way to a 5-1 scoring run all on her own. Spike after spike after spike, Benting was simply on fire as nothing pulled her down.

The exasperated Lady Bulldogs were unable to collect themselves as Soriano delivered Adamson at match point, 14-13. From there, it was the star of the night delivering the final blow, as Benting’s service ace snapped the Lady Bulldog’s win streak, 15-13.  

Adamson's guest player Angela Bentin exploded for 28 points in the win, 25 coming off spikes. She drew ample support from Shiela Pineda (18 markers) and Pau Soriano (nine points), as the team held on despite NU forcing a fifth set.

NU's Dindin Santiago was good for 24 points. Myla Pablo added 12, while Carmina Aganon and Alyja Santiago scored 11 and 10 markers, respectively in the loss.

Game two of both series will be on Thursday at the SM MOA Arena. The Ateneo versus UST game will be replayed on Wednesday, while Adamson versus NU will be aired on Thursday, both at 1pm on GMA News TV. - CLP/AMD, GMA News