The UST Golden Spikers suffered their third straight loss in the UAAP Season 86 volleyball tournament at the hands of the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 25-15, 30-32, 25-20, 20-25, 15-17 on Saturday, March 9 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Rookie MVP Josh Ybañez showcased dominance, racking up 31 points, followed by Paul Colinares, who had 18 points. GBoy De Vega also contributed 16 points in a losing effort for UST.

Setter-captain Dux Yambao also hit the 30-point mark in his department, putting up 30 excellent sets for the squad from España.

Ateneo's Jian Salarzon led the way, putting up 22 markers, while Ken Batas showed form by dropping 18 points. Jett Gopio and Amil Pacinio closed the game with 17 points each.

Two crucial kills in crunch time from Batas and Salarzon secured the Blue Eagles' third win of the season in a fiercely contested fifth set.

The Golden Spikers made quick work in the first set, putting the Katipunan-based squad away in just 24 minutes, 25-15, punctuated by an attack from Colinares.

The Blue Eagles bounced back in an extended second set, enduring a 4-1 run from the Golden Spikers to tie it up at 20. Two net touch violations from UST proved costly as the Blue Eagles knotted the set score.

The Golden Spikers re-established their dominance in the third frame, 25-20, with the help of a scorching Ybañez, who paced UST’s offense with 11 points in the set alone.

UST sparked a 7-2 run in the waning moments of the fourth set to cut the lead down to one, 18-19, through a kill from Ybañez.

The Blue Eagles held off a surge from the Golden Spikers to force the match into a fifth set, 25-20, through two attacks from Salarzon and Gopio.

Late errors and Ateneo's timely hits ultimately lifted the Blue Eagles to victory.

UST stands at 2-3.

The Golden Spikers will face the UP Fighting Maroons on Wednesday, March 13, with the venue still to be determined. -With reports from Johann Coronel