Adamson Lady Falcons celebrate against UE Lady Warriors in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines–Adamson still found a distracted University of the East a tough nut to crack in a hard-earned 25-19, 25-19, 26-28, 29-27 triumph on Sunday night at the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball.
Barbie Jamili, seeing action for the first time this season, displayed the goods the Lady Falcons needed after firing 18 attacks in leading her team with 20 points while Antonette Adolfo and Red Bascon likewise delivered.
“It was really intense and I commend my players for not giving up,” said Adamson coach JP Yude after they nearly pulled it off in straight sets only to let the Lady Warriors charge back.
SCHEDULE: UAAP Season 86 volleyball first round
While the Lady Falcons notched their second victory in four outings, the defeat inflicted a double blackeye on the Lady Warriors, who dropped to 1-3 in another losing effort at a time when UE coach Jerry Yee got suspended by the UAAP.
Yee won’t be around at the Lady Warriors’ sidelines for the remainder of the season after the league announced its decision to put him in cold storage following a complaint raised by a member school against him on account of conduct violative of the purposes of the UAAP.
If Yee’s ban affected the Lady Warriors, they hardly showed it on the floor.
With the Lady Warriors trailing by two sets, Casiey Dongallo came to life and led her team with relentless strikes that kept them in the fight.
Adamson Lady Falcons’ Red Bascon.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
Both teams battled ferociously in the extended third frame, but Adamson blinked as successive attacks by Adolfo and Bascon went too strong for UE’s benefit at set point.
Another tight back-and-forth scramble ensued in the prolonged fourth set and this time the Lady Falcons finally got a stubborn rival off their backs.
May Ann Nuiqui knocked it down off the block and Jen Villegas scored an ace as Adamson prevented the match from going to the limit.
READ: UE coach Jerry Yee blasts UAAP suspension, claims ‘no due process’
Dongallo led the Lady Warriors with 26 points, 23 of them attacks mostly in the last two sets, and had three blocks.
Cashing in on UE’s service errors and defensive lapses, the Lady Falcons clawed their way in the first set with Bascon connecting on a combination play at set point.
Adamson sustained the siege in the next set and again thrived on the miscues at the opposite end. Nuiqui’s smash at the center put them closer and Casiey Dongallo only made it easier for the Lady Falcons to secure the set after miscalculating her down-the-line hit that sailed past the sideline.
Adolfo had 16 points for the Lady Falcons and Bascon contributed 13 while Jamili added 12 digs and two blocks.
“We need to work double time on our passing and service. Our goal is to be consistent,” said Yude.
The UAAP said Yee “retains the ability to train the Lady Warriors and coach the team in non-UAAP events” and the suspension will not impact the team’s record in the ongoing season.
“After a thorough deliberation by the UAAP Board of Managing Directors (BMD), a recommendation was elevated to the Board of Trustees (BOT). On February 29, 2024, the BOT concurred with the BMD findings that Coach Yee had engaged in acts inconsistent with the league’s objectives,” the UAAP said in a statement.