De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde imposed its will on Mapua University en route to a 25-19, 25-17, 25-10 win in the NCAA Season 101 women's volleyball on Wednesday at the San Andres Sports Complex in Manila.
The Lady Blazers had to survive a tight Set 1 before dominating the next two frames, extending their winning streak to four for a 10-3 card in Group A while the Lady Cardinals ended the group stage with a 5-8 record.
Benilde will finish the preliminaries in second spot to secure one of the twice-to-beat bonuses in Group A alongside top-seeded University of Perpetual Help System DALTA (11-2).
Zam Nolasco emerged as the usual suspect for the reigning four-time champions, dropping 16 points built on 13 attacks and three blocks while Clydel Catarig churned out 10 markers and 10 digs.
The sweep victory, though, did not come without a scare as Mapua even took an early 10-7 lead in Set 1 off an ace from rookie Alex Leabres. But the Lady Blazers slowly unleashed their true form as Shekaina Lleses fired an ace of her own to close out the opening frame, 25-19.
Benilde just built on that momentum in the succeeding sets as Catarig sent the Taft crew to a massive 20-7 lead off a push from the opposite in Set 3.
Catarig then turned it into a 21-9 lead courtesy of a cross-curt kill on the way to the straight-set victory that gave Benilde the confidence booster ahead of the quarterfinals.
Benilde will face Arellano University in the quarterfinals while Mapua will face Group B second seed San Beda University.
—JKC, GMA Integrated News
