MANILA, Philippines – Moving closer to another Final Four spot, the UST Golden Tigresses took down the hapless UE Lady Warriors, 25-19, 25-16, 25-15, for their third straight win in the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament on Saturday, April 12, at the Araneta Coliseum.
The Tigresses’ win booted out Shaina Nitura-led Adamson from contention, making the Final Four now just between five teams: NU, La Salle, FEU, UST, and UP. Especially heartbreaking for the Lady Falcons was they were coincidentally the next game on the Saturday schedule against the Lady Tamaraws.
UST now improved to 8-4, sharing the third spot with FEU and going three wins above UP. The Tigresses could secure the Final Four slot with a UP loss against La Salle on Sunday, April 13.
UST also kept its twice-to-beat incentive hopes alive, tying the win total of the current No. 2 Lady Spikers.
“The game is important to give other players exposure,” UST head coach Kung Fu Reyes said in Filipino.
“It’s just a matter of time that they can perform and maximize their opportunities and see what they have been practicing in games,” he added.
Angge Poyos led the Tigresses with 12 points, while Regina Jurado and rookie Kyla Cordora added 10 and 9 markers, respectively, as UST closes in on their fifth straight Final Four appearance.
Cordora also added 7 digs and 6 receptions to break out from a slump for the Tigresses.
“The girls delivered, like Kyla. At least, that was additional experience for her, and hopefully, we can use that in the upcoming games,” Reyes said.
UST dominated from start to finish, connecting 46 attacks against UE’s 19 in the lopsided victory.
Van Bangayan only had 6 points, while Khy Cepada and Kayce Balingit put up 4 markers each for the Lady Warriors, whose squad has yet to win a game this season in 13 games.
UST will next face UP on Wednesday, April 23, after the Holy Week break, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
On the other hand, UE will look to salvage a season-ending win against the Ateneo Blue Eagles on Saturday, April 26. – Rappler.com