V-League: NU Lady Bulldogs forge Finals duel with Ateneo, nip Adamson in four

The NU Lady Bulldogs advance to the Finals of the 10th season of the Shakey’s V-League after a four-set victory, 24-26, 25-20, 25-15 and 25-22 against the Adamson Lady Falcons last Sunday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Earlier in the semifinals, Adamson had first prevailed last May 14 in five sets (22-25, 25-18, 25-19, 22-25, 15-13), before NU evened things up on May 16, also after the game went the distance (20-25, 25-21, 24-26, 25-21, 15-12).

The Lady Bulldogs held the lead early in the first set, 8-5, care of their impenetrable blocking. Behind the length and height advantage of Dindin and Jaja Santiago, Myla Pablo and Carmina Aganon served as reinforcements for the Lady Bulldogs as they increased their lead to six at 12-6.

Adamson trimmed their deficit down to four behind the Pau Soriano-Shiela Pineda tandem at 16-12, by the second technical timeout. The Lady Falcons kept keep themselves within reach with key plays from Faye Guevara, Mylene Paat and a Jennifer Macatuno ace that tied the set at 21-all. They then grabbed their first lead of the game at 23-22, but the moment was short-lived, quickly canceled out by Jaja Santiago’s attack to tie the things at 23-all.

Unfortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, Adamson completely flipped the script of the game as they finished off the set and their comeback with great defense, as back-to-back blocks gave them the win at 26-24.

Despite dropping the first set, the Lady Bulldogs were still in their proper rhythm as they were once again ahead by the first technical timeout, 8-6. NU extended their lead to 16-11, as Adamson struggled in containing the series of sharp spikes Dindin Santiago executed.

With additional key plays from the other Santiago, Jaja, and the aggressiveness of Aganon, the Lady Bulldogs survived the surging Lady Falcons with a score of 25-20.

The Lady Falcons made some adjustments in their rotation entering the third set, as Mayette Zapanta contributed off the bench for Adamson. However, Santiago continued to score for the Lady Bulldogs as NU once again led by the first technical timeout at 8-6.

With the momentum on the Lady Bulldog’s side, Aiko Urdas and Aganon scored in bunches for NU as they contributed in extending the lead to 21-12. With back-to-back service aces from Jaja Santiago and aggressive attacks from Pablo, NU finished the set with a ten-point advantage at 25-15.

It was another 8-6 lead for the Lady Bulldogs by the first technical timeout of the fourth set as the NU anticipated well on the defensive end of the court. With Urdas, Aganon and the Santiago Sisters dominant in the set, they were well in control and ready to blowout the Lady Falcons, going up 19-12 advantage.

But just like in the previous games of their semifinals series, Adamson did not back down without a fight. Behind the composure of Pau Soriano, who hit some smartly-placed shots, the hustle of Angela Benting and Mylene Paat, and the attacks of Shiela Pineda, the Lady Falcons got back into their game, with Pineda tying things at 21-all.

The Lady Bulldogs were done in by their carelessness, as a number of botched spikes and attacks allowed Adamson to stick around. However, while their offense was not going their way, the NU defense proved tricky enough to disrupt the Pineda-Soriano tandem. National U. escaped with the win after Myla Pablo scored the winning point at 25-22.

NU's Dindin Santiago provided her scoring touch, leading all players with 24 markers. Myla Pablo added 20 in support, while Carmina Aganon chipped in 11.

Rubie De Leon was able to garner six points while dishing out 37 excellent sets.

Adamson's Pau Soriano finished with a team-high 19 points in the loss, followed by Mylene Paat’s 11. Angela Benting and Shiela Pineda were just limited to 10 and nine scores respectively.

This game will be aired on GMA News TV, Monday at 1pm.

NU will face the defending champions Ateneo Lady Eagles in the finals, having beaten them in three sets in the elimination round. The best-of-three series begins Thursday at the SM MOA Arena at 4pm, with the battle for third place between Adamson and UST taking place first at 2pm. - AMD, GMA News