THE UST Golden Tigresses cruised to their fourth straight win beating the University of the East Lady Warriors, 25-21, 25-15, 25-23, at the start of the second round of the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum Saturday.
Tin Francisco and Pam Lastimosa benefited from UST’s 55 excellent sets as they tallied 10 points apiece while Cherry Ann Rondina and EJ Laure combined for 11 markers.
UE forced a 23-all deadlock in the final set after being down by six points but the Tigresses powered two quick hits to close the game.
“Commendable naman ang defense ng UE pero syempre wala naman kaming gagawin kundi sumubok nang sumubok hanggang sa mag-success yung ginagawa namin,” UST head coach Emilio “Kung Fu” Reyes Jr. said in an interview.
With six aces and 11 kills, UST dictated the second set behind Francisco and Lastimosa who scored five and four points, respectively, in the set alone.
The Lady Warriors led 12-6 in the first set before a Rondina combination hit capped a 12-3 run which gave UST a 18-15 advantage.
Shaya Adorador paced the Lady Warriors with 13 points.
The Tigresses (5-3) will face top-seed Ateneo de Manila University on March 15, Wednesday, 4 p.m., at the Arena in San Juan.
Erratum: Laure and Rondina COMBINED for 11 points. Lastimosa and Pacres topscored with 11 points apiece.