UAAP: NU Bulldogs make it back-to-back men's volleyball titles with series sweep of Ateneo

(Updated 6:22pm) The National University Bulldogs pulled off back-to-back titles in the UAAP men’s volleyball tournament, sweeping Ateneo de Manila University via a 25-22 21-25 25-23 27-25 game two win, Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Bulldogs had triumphed in game one in a three-set sweep 29-27 25-22 25-22, trumping their foes in the best-of-three series.

NU coach Dante Alinsunurin said of the win, “Kung willing ka manalo, talagang ibibigay sa’yo”

Against a predominantly Ateneo crowd, the Bulldogs defied the Eagle’s support system with their experience, with Alinsunurin adding, “Sobrang laking factor ng experience. Natuto na yung mga bata”

Team captain Rueben Inaudito was named Finals MVP. He was among four NU players who notched double-digit scoring with 11 points. “Pagdedefend talaga, sobrang hirap idefend yung title. Maraming gusto tumalo sa’yo dahil kayo yung nasa itaas,” Inaudito said, when asked which championship was harder to obtain. “Binabaliwala namin ang crowd and nagfocus kami sa game.”

Jan Paglinawan led the Bulldogs with 15 markers followed by 14 from Baysac and 13 from Torres. NU tallied an advantage on the offensive and defensive end with a 46-44 differential in attacks and a 15-4 lead in the blocking department.

The rookie of the year and MVP Marck Espejo had a game-high 20 points, with Ateneo also getting 12 from Rex Intal.
 
Espejo rallied his Ateneo squad in the early stages of the first set via consecutive service aces. Unfortunately for the Blue Eagles, unforced errors and faulty receptions opened up opportunities for the Bulldogs. A service error by Joshua Villanueva and an outside back-row attack by Espejo placed NU ahead by the first technical timeout at 8-6.

With a service ace by Ruben Baysac and an emphatic running spike by Peter Torres, the Blue Eagles found themselves in a 13-7 ditch, forcing Coach Oliver Almadro to call for time. The Blue Eagles continued to struggle on offense though, as the Bulldogs’ lead ballooned to 16-10.

Ateneo inched closer due to Joshua Villanueva’s consistency in the service zone coupled with Ysay Marasigan’s aggressiveness to attack the NU defenders. With a veteran swipe off the blockers by Neil Flores and a cross-court winner by Espejo, Ateneo regained the lead at 20-19. Unfortunately for the Blue Eagles, their unforced errors plagued their chances of stealing the opening set. Additionally, an open attack by Rueben Inaudito, drilled right down the middle of the court ,placed NU at set-point, 24-21. A Baysac hit to the startled Ateneo defense secured the set for the Bulldogs at 25-22.

The second set turned around well for the Blue Eagles as they opened with an 8-2 lead. But with constant reception errors and the Bulldog’s savvy front-row attacks, NU placed themselves within a point at 10-0. Ateneo retaliated with the explosiveness of senior Ricci Gonzales and Espejo, creating a three-point cushion at 16-13 by the second technical timeout.

Gonzales continued to play well for the Blue Eagles as the rampant attacks from the veteran positioned Ateneo at set-point, 24-20. Ateneo tied the match at one-set apiece with a Rex Intal winner, 25-21.

NU had control of the pace in the third set as highlighted by a long rally that ended with a cerebral tip by Baysac, NU ahead, 16-14. Ateneo was forced to call for time after NU's Fauzi Ismail’s maintained the Bulldogs' advantage over the Blue Eagle’s defense, 20-16. Peter Torres kept NU up, 21-17, with a running spike, but Ateneo bounced back with well-timed blocks and an Espejo cross-court kill that tied the set at 21-all.
 
Ateneo relied heavily on Espejo’s offense with a back-and0forth affair between the rookie and NU’s veterans. However, every Espejo spike was answered by either a Torres attack or an Inaudito kill. NU was able to break away from the trailing Blue Eagles at 25-23 with a Jan Paglinawan cross-court winner to the open zone of Ateneo’s defense.

The fourth set kicked off with both teams exchanging scores. Things boiled down to a 12-all deadlock, before Ateneo capitalized via a 4-0 scoring run that placed the Blue Eagles at 16-12. But the Ateneo run was immediately erased by a larger NU momentum shift. The Bulldogs' 8-0 blast propelled the Bulldogs to a 20-16 advantage. They reached match point at 24-21 before Ateneo pulled off one final last-ditch effort.

A botched Torres kill that was called as a touch violation tied the set at 24-all. Torres made up for the error with an emphatic running spike, before Ismail lined up an outside hit on the succeeding play. With the score tied at 25-all, a combination play drawn up by NU allowed Inaudito to drill one for the Bulldogs. Ateneo’s reliable rookie and MVP, Espejo, failed to capitalize on his attack on the next play as his error sealed the Bulldogs’ title defense at 27-25. - RAF / AMD, GMA News