Plenty of heroes emerged for an undermanned San Sebastian College-Recoletos in their 27-25, 20-25, 26-24, 17-25, 15-7 escape against Jose Rizal University in NCAA Season 101 women's volleyball on Wednesday at the San Andres Sports Complex in Manila.
The Lady Stags were without the services of Kath Santos, their leading scorer and the league’s 11th overall, but San Sebastian proved it is far more than a one-woman show.
Juna May Gonzales answered the call and posted a team-high 20 points while veteran middle blocker KJ Dionision posted 15 markers, highlighted by a massive nine-block outing, as the Lady Stags improved to 4-6.
San Sebastian also got a key contribution from transferee Kleiner Abraham, who dazzled with a triple-double effort of 13 points, 11 digs, and 13 receptions to turn in her best game for the Lady Stags since transferring from San Beda.
San Sebastian opened the fifth set with 3-1 lead, but the Lady Bombers were quick to turn things around with Czarina Ramos fueling a 3-0 run to help JRU overtake the Lady Stags.
However, Dionisio came alive, unloading back-to-back rejections on Ramos for an 8-4 cushion before Ramos' own attack error allowed the Lady Stags to seize a 10-5 advantage.
Dionisio came up with another one of her nine blocks, this time stopping lefty opposite hitter Nicole Deala, as San Sebastian surged to a 12-6 lead.
Dionisio then converted a kill off an overpass from JRU before Gonzales buried back-to-back kills that ultimately took the fight out of JRU, sending San Sebastian to its third win in the last four games.
Ramos and Deala were the bright spots for JRU, finishing with 28 and 23 points, respectively, with the latter also grabbing 14 digs and 10 receptions.
—JKC, GMA Integrated News
