The UST Golden Tigresses succumbed to the De La Salle University Lady Spikers, 25-21,23-25,19-25, 24-26 in the second round of the UAAP 81 Women’s Volleyball Tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay Sunday.

UST began the game with a good opening salvo, capped off with double aces from super rookie Eya Laure. The Tigresses were able to lead early on with Kecelyn Galdones closing the set with a block.

The Tigresses fell early on the second set 18-11, before pouncing their way to inch closer but to no avail as the Lady Spikers claim the second set.

UST went to have a good start in the third set leading 11-9, before tapering off with La Salle’s attack efficiency and several errors from the Tigresses paving the way for the Lady Spikers to take the set.

The fourth set was a back and forth affair with the two teams not giving an inch until the final deuce at 24-all. The Lady Spikers’ defense proved to be too much as they take the game at the last moments of the set.

Rookie sensation Eya Laure chipped in 20 points for UST, while Sisi Rondina poured in 19.

For the Lady Spikers, captain Des Cheng had a career high 20 points.

With the loss, UST falls to 6-4 in solo fourth place, while LaSalle solidifies its hold on the second spot at 7-3.

The Tigresses will look to bounce back against the UE Lady Warriors on April 6 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

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The UST Golden Tigresses was stunned by the first-seeded Ateneo Lady Eagles in 5 sets, 25-19, 25-22, 25-27, 22-25, 11-15, Wednesday Afternoon to open the 2nd round of UAAP Volleyball.

The Tigresses won the first two sets but could not sustain their good start for the rest of the match.

UST had a good run in the middle of the third and fourth set but the Lady Eagles’ defense helped them to win the sets.

The graduating Sisi Rondina tops the scoring for the Golden Tigresses having 35 points, followed by the rookie Eya Laure who tallied 21 points.

“Wala naman kasing nananalo ng 2 sets. Pero all in all, maganda kasi naka kuha pa din kami ng 2 sets. Ito yung talo na hindi bumagsak balikat namin. Talo kami kung wala kaming natutunan”, UST head coach Kung Fu Reyes stated.

Maddie Madayag’s combination of offense and defense lead the  Ateneo Lady Eagles with a total of 23 points banking on 11 blocks.

UST dropped to 5-3 record after this loss.

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The National University Bulldogs asserted their dominance over the UST Tiger Spikers in three sets, 18-25, 18-25, 21-25 in the UAAP Season 81 Men’s Volleyball tournament at the FilOil Flying V Center in San Juan Saturday.

The first two sets saw UST struggle to defend against NU’s offense which was clicking on all cylinders, and were facing deficits as large as seven points within those two sets.

During the first set, despite their slow start to begin the game, UST was able to cut down NU’s seven-point lead down late to three with a 4-0 run that brought the game to 18-21, but unforced errors and NU’s offense ultimately led to the Bulldogs’ own 4-0 run to take the set.

In the second set, UST had a much better start, preventing NU to go on huge runs early, however they were unable to keep their strong momentum going, and were unable to respond when NU’s offense started to click, which, like the first set buried them in six to seven point deficits.

On the third set however, UST was able to keep up with NU better as compared to the previous two sets and were even able to tie the game in the closing moments at 21.

Joshua Umandal chipped in 13 points for UST in the losing cause, while Jayvee Sumagaysay and Manuel Medina had eight points apiece.

Sumagaysay’s eight points also included a game-high four blocks.

After the game, Coach Odjie Mamon attributed their lack of gameplan execution and his team’s health as factors to their loss, citing rookie Jaron Requinton specifically when it came to the topic about health.

“Sa gameplan di na execute, resistant sila dun sa napractice namin, resistant sila to execute today, tapos di talaga healthy yung players, nawala si – si Jaron (Requinton) di 100% so I opted for (Jireh) Buro kaso siya naman ang na sprain so ipinasok ko si Jaron. Kaya lang si Jaron Requinton, wala siya nung two days preparation namin for this game so di talaga ma ieexecute yung game plan,” he explained.

When asked about how to prevent losses like these, Mamon stated that as long as the team is healthy, losses like these can be prevented.

“Kailangan lang healthy sila, yun lang,” he quipped.

For NU, it was Bryan Bagunas with a game-high 14 points. Teammates Angelo Almendras and Francis Saura also scored double digits with 12 and 10, respectively.

UST now falls to a 3-3 record while NU improves to a 4-1 slate.

UST is set to take on the UE Red Warriors next on Mar. 17, Sunday at the same venue.

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