UAAP: Aganon, Santiago twin towers tow NU past gutsy Lady Falcons

The National University Lady Bulldogs survived gutsy play from the Adamson Lady Falcons, enduring some hard-fought sets for a 26-28 25-21 30-28 25-20 victory on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

"Kailangan parin namin i-improve yung maturity at yung receiving kasi madali lang opensa. Focus lang," said NU head coach Edjet Mabbayad.

With the win, NU solidified its hold of the second spot with a 6-1 win-loss card, while Adamson still sits at fifth at 5-4.

"Yung first round namin naging maganda. Hindi porket nag-end kami sa ganyang standings marerelax na kami. Mahaba pa yung tournament," added Mabbayad.

The Lady Falcons fed off the energy of the Mall of Asia Arena Crowd that yearned to see any form of an upset. Adamson was able to stick it out with the league's number two team through the first, knotting the game at 25-all, before Jaja Santiago tried to lead NU for the kill. The younger of the Santiago towers finished off a block, but Mylene Paat was there for a quick return to knot it at 26-all. Shiela Pineda followed, scoring one off Jaja Santiago to give Adamson set point, before May Macatuno surprised the NU defensed by flicking it up and in on the second touch, 28-26.

It was Amanda Villanueva versus Aiko Urdas at the start of the second, as Adamson benefited from a string of NU errors to take an 8-6 lead. The Lady Buldogs then leaned on Mina Aganon for some conversions, as NU knotted it up at 10-all, but Villanueva and May Macatuno pushed Adamson ahead anew, 19-16.

A gamble by Perez led to an NU point, before the Lady Bulldogs milked the Jaja Santiago-Aiko Urdas double block combination. A pair of Adamson errors gave NU the driver's seat, 22-21, before two straight from the Lady Bulldogs, followed by a mis-timed hit by Villanueva, gave coach Edjet Mabbayad's squad the second, 25-21.

"Natutuwa naman kami na naka recover sila," added the Lady Bulldogs mentor. "Mag-relax lang sila and wag masyadong tight yung muscle. Enjoy lang yung laro kasi masyado silang seryoso."

Early struggles on reception by Adamson gave NU an 8-4 advantage in the third. The Lady Falcons strung some points together soon after, as Pineda worked on angles to combat NU's height, while Mylene Paat canned key aces to tie the set at 10-all. Villanueva chimed in, sending kills to the back row, while Pineda worked around the net to establish a 21-18 advantage.

It was a long battle for the set, as the two teams coudln't shake each other off. Adamson had several chances to put the game away, but Pineda and Mayette Zapanta committed serious miscues to keep NU in the game. A fiery Amanda Villanueva looked to claim the third for the Lady Falcons, but a pair of makes from Aganon gave NU set point, 29-28. The set ended with a Jaja Santiago shuting the door on Villanueva, 30-28.

The Lady Bulldogs continued to control the game in the fourth set, siezing a four-point edge after the second technical timeout. Errors from Paat kept NU ahead, as Jaja Santiago  got one form the middle for a five-point lead, 19-14. Another Pablo conversion forced Adamson coach Sherwin Meneses to call for time, and his team responded with three straight, 20-17. The blitz led NU to call a timeout as well, and the Lady Bulldogs recovered to re-take a 24-19 lead. Another power hit from Aganon ended the game, as NU claimed the match, 25-20.

The Santiago sisters combined for 26 points, but it was Aganon who delivered the clutch hits to give NU the victory. Aganon led the team with 15, while Aiko Urdas and Myla Pablo had 13 each.

Shiela Pineda led Adamson with 24 while Amanda Villanueva had 14.

NU had a monster lead in kills (62-43), but the resilient Adamson squad made it a game in the blocking department. The NU towers barely edged Adamson in denials, 10-9. Adamson was stellar with their service, landing nine aces while NU had none. - AMD, GMA News