Bulldogs slip past Blue Eagles in UAAP men’s volleyball

MANILA, Philippines — National University slipped past Ateneo, 17-25, 25-21, 25-20, 18-25, 15-9, Saturday to continue its winning ways in the UAAP season 76 men’s volleyball tournament at the Arena in San Juan.

Best attacker Peter Torres carried the Bulldogs with 18 points, nearly half of it in the final set, while Jan Berlin Paglinawan and Rueben Inaudito chipped in 14 and 13 markers, respectively.

After failing to make most out of a 2-1 set edge, NU pulled its act together in the fifth set and led by as wide at 6-0, then finished off Ateneo.

The defending champions, as the league resumes from a holiday break, remain the only undefeated squad with a record of 5-0.

Marck Jesus Espejo led the Blue Eagles with 20 points, but it was not enough to stop his team from falling below the .500 in the standings with a 2-3 card.

Rex Intal, whose quick hit gave Ateneo the fourth set, finished with 15 points.

In the other men’s match, La Salle turned back a persistent University of the East side, 25-21, 25-16, 25-18, behind Levin Dimayuga’s 21 points.

Raymark Woo added 12 points for the Green Archers, who scored their second victory against three losses.

No Red Warrior, meanwhile, finished in double digits as Kim Sawal led the way with eight points while Mark Santos and Angelone Soria contributed six apiece as they dropped to 0-5.