V-League: Arellano Lady Chiefs dump UAAP champs Ateneo Lady Eagles in five sets

The Arellano Lady Chiefs stunned the defending UAAP champions, Ateneo Lady Eagles in a five-set thriller, 21-25 25-16 17-25 25-20 15-13, Sunday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in the Shakey's V-League Season 11 1st Conference.

Arellano now tops the standings in Pool A with a 2-0 record, while Ateneo is in a three-way tie for second place with Adamson and SWU.

When asked to comment on the victory, Arellano head coach Roberto Javier said that their initial gameplan was to avoid Ateneo’s keen libero, Den Lazaro, “Dapat walang bola kay Lazaro, at kay Valdez dapat dalawa yung block, hindi pwuede isa lang.”

Danna Henson carried the offensive load for Arellano as she led the Lady Chiefs with 14 points, 12 coming from attacks. Cristine Joy Rosario finished as the team’s co-top scorer with 14. Elaine Sagun followed with nine and Shirley Salamagos tallied seven.

Alyssa Valdez once again led all scorers with 20 points in their loss. Michelle Morente and Amy Ahomiro followed with 15 and 14 respectively. The rookie, Kim Gequillana, played all five-sets and notched 10 markers for the Lady Eagles.

Ateneo was powered by Gequillana and Valdez in the first set as the Lady Eagles cruised past their opponents. Valdez took charge from the front-row and gave Arellano a handful on the defensive end, building a 15-10 advantage.

Arellano kept within the set with Henson and Rosario sparking the Lady Chief’s offense. But the Gequillana-Valdez duo was sufficient for the Lady Eagles as their efficiency from the front-row placed them at set-point, 24-20. Menchie Tubiera responded with an immediate attack, but it was unfortunately squandered by an Arellano service error on the next play. Ateneo bagged the opener, 25-21.  

The Lady Chiefs adjusted in the second set as they let loose a one-sided performance. Arellano, sparked by the versatility of Henson and the front-row presence of Rosario, pushed their lead to double-figures at 20-10. Henson not only displayed an efficient game from the service zone, but she also remained relentless attacking Ateneo’s line of blockers. With a series of unforced errors and miscommunications on Ateneo’s part, the Lady Chief’s delivered a 25-16 drubbing to the Lady Eagles.

Ateneo bounced back in the third set via the high-flying combination of Valdez and Morente. Coupled with the savvy presence of Ahomiro, the Lady Eagles entered the technical timeout up 16-11. With an additional spark from Marge Tejada, the Lady Eagles placed themselves in a favorable position at set-point, 24-17. Ahomiro finished off the set with a well-timed block and sealed the score at 25-17.

Arellano however turned up the intensity in the fourth set as Sagun and Henson were too for the Lady Eagles. Despite the usual offensive outbursts from Valdez, the Lady Chiefs played with much cohesion and took a 17-11 advantage by the technical timeout. With Sagun, Henson and Ronerry Dela Cruz scoring in bunches, Arellano forced the fifth and final set at 25-20.

The Lady Chiefs did not hold back come the last set as they opened with a huge 9-3 lead. From Henson’s cross court-winners to Salamagos’ running shots, Arellano had full control of the fifth. With the score in favor of Arellano at 11-5, Ateneo turned to Gequillana facilitating from the service zone and Valdez manning the front-row, reeling off a 7-0 scoring run that gave them a 12-11 advantage.

The score led to a 13-all deadlock before Valdez’s attack smacked straight to the net, giving Arellano 14-13 match point. The high-scoring Henson then soared for a cross-court winner that drilled the Lady Eagles into defeat, 15-13.

Despite a 50-46 advantage by the Lady Eagles in terms of points won in attacks, the Lady Chiefs benefited in terms of their opponent’s errors with a 41-30 differential.

The elated Javier and the rest of the Arellano squad, will face De La Salle Benilde on their next game, on April 3, Thursday. - AMD, GMA News