Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Ateneo kept its foothold atop the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball tournament with a tough three-set victory over University of Santo Tomas, 25-10, 26-24, 28-26, Wednesday at Filoil Flying V Centre.
In a matchup of the league’s hottest teams, it was the Lady Eagles (8-1) who came out on top as they extended their win streak to seven games while the Golden Tigress (5-4) had their four-game unbeaten run snapped.
UST, after being down 24-19, rallied back with a 6-0 sprint with Cherry Rondina setting up EJ Laure to give the Golden Tigresses a 25-24 lead.
This became the start of a back-and-forth tango until Laure’s service went long to give Ateneo a 27-26 lead.
Mich Morente then finished things off with an ace to secure Ateneo’s win.
Lady Eagles assistant coach Sherwin Meneses said that despite their impressive record, Ateneo is far from reaching its peak.
“I don’t think we’re near our peak, and I think there are still a lot that this team can show,” said Meneses. “This isn’t Ateneo’s real game because coach Tai [Bundit] would always emphasize that they train as if they’re not on top of the standings.”
Bea De Leon and Jhoana Maraguinot led Ateneo with 12 points apiece while Kat Tolentino and Morente also finished in double digits with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Rondina led UST with 14 points while Laure added nine.
Ateneo and UST had the same number of scoring spikes with 33 but it was in the service department where the Lady Eagles showed their class with a distinct 16-5 advantage.