THEIR hope of a UAAP Women’s Volleyball crown went straight to the dustbin as the UST Volleybelles failed to prevent the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws from sweeping the tournament, losing in four sets, 19-25, 25-20, 12-25, 24-26, last Sept. 22 at the UP College of Human Kinetics Gym.
With the UST Lady Spikers still groping for form, FEU, anchored on the fearsome tandem of Monica Aleta and Joanne Bunag, pounded the Tigresses to take the first set, 25-19.
In the second set, UST came out firing with an early 4-1 lead but FEU caught up with them at seven-all moments later. The defending champions were leading, 15-13, when UST went into overdrive after a time-out to take a 17-15 lead. The Morayta-based volleybelles tied UST again at 20-all but the España-based spikers finished off the Lady Tamaraws with a 5-0 run to take the second set.
In the third set, FEU silenced UST’s guns for an early 6-1 lead and went full blast en route to a 25-12 set victory.
Pushed against the wall, UST’s top spiker and veteran Joyce Pano led an opening 7-3 assault. However, with UST’s turnovers, the Lady Tamaraws, with the help of Mary Ann Manalo, restored order in their offense to tie the set at nine-all. It was a see-saw battle from then on with no team giving an inch.
UST was leading, 22-20, when Tigress Kate Co Yu Kang committed a receiving error, yielding momentum to the rallying FEU squad. FEU’s Aleta, the league’s best spiker, unleashed a powerful spike to tie UST at 22-all. The Tigresses again took the lead, 24-23, with Pano’s smash from the left wing. After that it was all downhill for UST as Pano misfired in the ensuing play and Rubie de Leon faltered in setting up Anna Fulo to blow the golden chance of fashioning out a deciding fifth-set showdown with the Lady Tamaraws. Aleta lived up to her billing as she dealt the finishing blow on UST with a thunderous spike over the outstretched arms of two UST defenders.
With the win, FEU completed a 14-game sweep of the tournament and automatically bagged their second straight crown.
“Malakas talaga sila at mas kumpleto kumpara sa team ko. Kulang kami at may malaking butas ang team ko sa gitna,” UST Women’s Volleyball Coach Augusto Santamaria readily admitted following the loss.
UST wound up the tournament with an 11-3 win-loss record to share runners-up honors with De La Salle University. Alder T. Almo
