THE Ateneo Lady Eagles secured a twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four of Season 81 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines after shutting out the Adamson Lady Falcons, 25-16, 28-26 and 25-17, in their league match on Wednesday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan City.
Derailed in its attempt to secure the semifinal incentive last time around, Ateneo (11-2) made sure it would pull through against Adamson (1-12) with a dominant performance right from the opening buzzer.
Earlier in the day, the defending champions De La Salle Lady Spikers notched their 10th win and fortified their top-two push with a straight-sets win over the University of the East Lady Warriors, 25-17, 25-16 and 25-19.
Led by their veterans, the Lady Eagles were thorough at the start of their “avian war” with the Lady Falcons.
They soared to a 16-11 lead midway into the opening frame as Kat Tolentino and Maddie Madayag made their presence felt, before closing out the set with a 9-5 run to go up, 1-0.
Adamson came out the second on firmer footing.
Despite going down 0-5 early, the Lady Falcons charged back, led by Krich Macaslang, to claim an 8-6 lead by the first technical break.
Ateneo, however, did not stay down for long, answering with a 10-6 blast to go on top, 16-14, heading into homestretch of the frame.
The Lady Falcons turned to their bench for some support and were repaid instantly as they overtook their opponents, 21-19, with players like Lee-Ann Perez leading the charge.
It was, however, temporary as the Lady Eagles flapped their wings harder to squeak past and go up, 2-0.
Ateneo continued to be steady to begin the third set, racing to an 8-6 lead early on.
Adamson kept pressuring Ateneo after but the Lady Eagles continued to hold sway, 16-13, by the second technical timeout.
The Lady Eagles stretched their lead to five, 20-15, after and from there were never really threatened as they moved for the win.
Tolentino paced a balanced attack by Ateneo with 17 points.
Madayag had 13 while Ponggay Gaston finished with nine points.
For Adamson it was Bern Flora and Chiara Permentilla who led with nine points each.
“I commend the players for playing the way they did. They have been sacrificing a lot,” said Ateneo coach Oliver Almadro following their win.
“We are thankful to have gotten the twice-to-beat and have a chance to go to the finals. But it is only a chance and we still have to work for it,” he added.
LADY SPIKERS
Meanwhile, in the first game, La Salle made short work of UE by winning in just three sets.
Stayed on top of things throughout the match, the Lady Spikers (10-3) with the victory further strengthened their claim to one of the two top spots and the twice-to-beat advantage that go with it in the Final Four.
The contest had a familiar route in the first two sets with the Lady Warriors starting strong only to falter amid a tough stand from the Lady Spikers as the sets progressed and bow down.
Judith Abil led UE to a good start in the third frame as they took an 8-6 lead by the first technical timeout.
Collectively though La Salle rallied back, overtaking the Lady Warriors, 16-14, midway.
The Lady Spikers then moved to a 20-17 lead after.
UE tried to make a last-ditch effort to come back, coming to within three points, 22-19.
But Des Cheng and the rest of the Lady Spikers would have none of that as they racked up three straight points after to close out the match.
Rookie Jolina Dela Cruz and Aduke Ogunsanya led La Salle with 10 points each with Tin Tiamzon adding nine.
Cheng and Des Clemente had eight points apiece for La Salle.
UE (3-10), for its part, was paced by Abil with 16 points.
“This was an important match for us and we could not afford to relax. UE had nothing to lose. I told the players to continue playing hard,” said La Salle coach Ramil De Jesus after their win.
“We still have to work on our game. We are now on the last part and we have to be ready heading into the next round,” he added.
La Salle rounds out its elimination-round schedule versus the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws on April 28 while UE plays Ateneo on the same date.
SOURCE: https://www.bworldonline.com/ateneo-lady-eagles-notch-twice-to-beat-advantage/
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