MANILA, Philippines — University of the Philippines pulled off the biggest upset yet as it shocked Final Four contender Far Eastern University, 26-24, 25-16, 16-25, 25-19, in the UAAP Season 76 women’s volleyball tournament at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan Sunday.
Katherine Bersola led the Lady Maroons’ upset with 20 points, including a hit that punched through a hole in the Lady Tamaraws’ defense to put her team at match point, 24-18.
“We’re trying to build on anything we can this season so that we could get enough momentum heading into next season,” said UP coach Gerry Yee after the Lady Maroons, already out of Final Four contention, chalked up just their second win in 11 games.
UP skipper Angeli Araneta added 15 big points, three of which came in a telling 6-0 run that turned a two-point deficit to a 15-11 edge in the fourth set.
The Lady Tamaraws, reeling the absence of their key contributor Remy Palma, showed signs of life in the third set behind super rookie Bernadette Pons.
Pons tried to fill in the void left by Palma, who missed the game due to a left knee injury, with a game-high 22 points but Palma’s absence exposed FEU, which fell to 6-7, at the defensive end.
The loss dealt a huge blow to the Lady Tams’ semifinals bid as they dropped to fifth with Adamson, which is playing against second-running National University as of posting, momentarily grabbing hold of the fourth spot with a half-game lead.
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