MANILA, Philippines – La Salle leaned on its veterans to march to the knockout semifinals.
The Lady Spikers hacked out a hard-earned victory against rival Ateneo Blue Eagles in a five-set marathon, 25-18, 25-20, 20-25, 20-25, 17-15, to claim a semifinal spot in the 2024 Shakey’s Super League Collegiate Pre-season Championship on Sunday, November 3, at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
Angel Canino fired 17 points, 15 coming off kills, to lead La Salle as Shevana Laput also starred by scoring 5 of her 16 points in the deciding set of the quarterfinal duel.
Amie Provido also came through the clutch, hammering the game-clinching kill block following a costly Ateneo error to seal the thriller after three hours and two minutes.
Provido finished with 13 points built on 7 spikes, 3 aces, and 3 blocks, while Katrina del Castillo added 11 points, highlighted by 5 blocks, for unbeaten La Salle in the preseason collegiate volleyball tournament.
“We lost our composure in the last two sets, so our coaches reminded us to move the way we used to and to return to our system,” Provido said in Filipino.
La Salle came back from a 5-7 deficit early in the fifth set and engaged Ateneo in a furious back-and-forth.
Winger Lyann de Guzman pushed the Blue Eagles at match point advantage, 14-13, but Sophia Buena overcooked her pressure-packed service for the first deuce.
De Guzman put Ateneo back on top before La Salle’s Jyne Soreno knotted it again at 15.
Ateneo’s AC Miner then committed an attack error in the next play and Provido shut the door on De Guzman as La Salle escaped with its seventh straight win in the tournament.
De Guzman unloaded all of her 17 points from spikes, while Buena had 12 points for Ateneo, which was relegated to the classification round.
FEU marches to semis
Far Eastern University also charged into the Final Four after rallying from a set down to boot out College of Saint Benilde, 21-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-17, in the other quarterfinal match.
The Lady Tamaraws banked on the stellar outings of veterans Chenie Tagaod, Alyzza Devosora, and Gerzel Petallo to recover from a slow start and stay unbeaten in seven games heading into the semifinal round.
Devosora and Tagaod scored 15 points each with both main gunners smashing in 14 attacks apiece for the Lady Tamaraws, the runners-up in the 2024 National Invitationals.
“We need to be more consistent and to trust each other more,” said Tagaod in Filipino after playing a pivotal role in the third set, smashing timely hits to back Devosora and Clarisse Loresco as FEU pulled away for good midway in the frame.
FEU also took advantage of the Lady Blazers’ 30 errors to book a second straight semis appearance after a third-place finish last year. – Rappler.com
