Lady Eagles trump Lady Bulldogs, force winner-take-all for second Finals berth
#8 Jorella Marie G. De Jesus Outside Hitter 5' 2" No fear spike against the Block of #3 ALYJA DAPHNE SANTIAGO of NU Quicker 6'5 & 1/2 in height and #2 Ivy Jisel A. Perez, Setter, 5' 9
The Ateneo De Manila University Lady Eagles extended their season with a dramatic 25-17 12-25 31-29 28-26 win over the National University Lady Bulldogs, Wednesday at the FilOil Flying V Arena, burning NU's twice-to-beat advantage in the second phase of the stepladder Final Four.
Ateneo (10-4) last week swept Adamson in three sets to get this far, with Saturday's match versus NU (12-2) turning into a loser-goes-home, with the winner advancing to face defending champions DLSU Lady Archers, who are undefeated this season.
Ella de Jesus emerged as Ateneo’s sparkplug, scoring 16 with 13 spikes and three service aces, including the game's last two points. When asked how she was able to handle the pressure, she replied, “Sobrang gusto namin manalo so hindi namin binitiwan lalo na kapag hawak naming yung chance.”
The Lady Eagles were off to a good start in the opening set as they entered the first technical timeout ahead at 8-4. Ateneo pushed their lead to six at 12-6 as they forced coach Edjet Mabbayad to call for time with an Ahomiro down-the-line winner. ADMU continued to score off fearless jousts by Ella de Jesus and well-timed blocks by Alyssa Valdez, to forge a 16-9 lead.
The Lady Eagles continued to score with their well-balanced ball distribution as Michelle Morente found attacking opportunities that eluded the NU blockers. With the Santiago sisters receiving limited touches, coupled with unforced errors by Myla Pablo and Aiko Urdas, Ateneo pushed their lead to 22-15. With a 12-6 advantage in the attack department of the first set, Ateneo sealed an early win, 25-17.
NU bounced back with an explosive second set start, going up 7-2. Dindin Santiago’s attacks gracefully found their way to bounce within the court as Ateneo struggled on defense.
Ivy Perez continued to feed the ball to the Santiago sisters, while Carmina Aganon contributed with cross-court winners. Ateneo however inched within two at 7-5, off Valdez’s service ace and unforced errors from Pablo.
However, the Lady Bulldogs bounced back immediately with the duo of Pablo and Urdas serving as reinforcements to the towering Santiago’s front-row dominance. NU found themselves on top by double-figures quickly, 22-12. The Lady Eagles struggled to find their rhythm as Dindin Santiago easily finished the second set with a well-timed tip, 25-12 drubbing.
The third set was a back-and -orth affair between the two squads as no team wanted to slip away. For every de Jesus, Morente and Valdez attack, there was a corresponding Dindin and Jaja Santiago front-row kill. NU was able to propel themselves with set-point at 24-21. Ateneo however mounted a rally to tie the set at 24-all, as Valdez scored on three straight opportunities: A spike that pierced through the blockers, a well-timed denial and a shot to the open zone.
Both teams exchanged points as the score eventually boiled down to a 29-all deadlock. Unfortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, Dindin Santiago lined up a mis-reception that set up Amy Ahomiro for an easy kill, propelling the Lady Eagles to set point. With the crowd in complete pandemonium, Ateneo managed to finish the extended set at 31-29 with a Dindin Santiago attack that found its way bouncing off the antenna.
The fourth set was yet another closely contested match with the Lady Eagles down late, 21-19. Ateneo however managed to tie the game with an offensive explosion from de Jesus, 22-all. The two teams stayed tied at 26-all before de Jesus once again delivered for Ateneo. Two straight block-piercing spikes from her gave Ateneo the 28-26 win.
Alyssa Valdez tallied 29 markers, while rookie Michelle Morente added 12 points for the girls in blue-and-white.
The Santiago sisters topped NU in scoring with Jaja notching 17, while Dindin scored 13. Carmina Aganon followed with nine points while Aiko Urdas managed eight.
The Lady Eagles dominated in spikes, 55-39, but the Lady Bulldogs hung around thanks to an 11-5 difference in blocks, and a whopping 42-29 margin in points off opponents' errors. Ateneo also led in all the non-scoring skills, 36-19 in excellent digs, 29-15 in excellent sets, and 15-11 in receptions