UAAP: Lady Spikers enter semifinals, Green Spikers fail to qualify

In the last leg of the UAAP 77 Beach Volleyball eliminations last August 30 and 31, the DLSU Spikers ended with contrasting fates as the DLSU Lady Spikers finished second in the standings with a 6-1 win-loss record to qualify for the semifinals. Meanwhile, their male counterparts, the DLSU Green Spikers, continued their slump, ending with a 0-7 record for the second straight season.

The Lady Spikers racked up three wins this weekend with a close victory over their co-semifinalists, the FEU Lady Tamaraws, and a dominating performance against both the UE Lady Warriors and the ADMU Lady Eagles. Unfortunately, the Green Spikers did not experience success of their own as they lost to the UE Red Warriors and to the defending champion NU Bulldogs last weekend.

August 30

In the August 30 games, the Green Spikers suffered another defeat at the expense of the NU Bulldogs, 21-19, 21-10.

This marked their sixth straight loss in the season. Kevin Dimayuga played good coverage and blocking while Jopet Movido, who replaced Mike Frey in the match, made good attacks that helped La Salle keep up in the first set despite NU being a much stronger team. A drop shot by Movido tied the set at 19-all, but the Bulldogs easily scored the last two points to take the first set, 21-19. The second set became an easy one for NU as they kept the Green Spikers behind by as much as eight points, 17-9. There were no signs of turning back for the Bulldogs as they locked La Salle at 10 points to win the match in a convincing manner, 21-10.

Meanwhile, the Lady Spikers continued their winning ways as they survived a tight three-set match against the FEU Lady Tamarawas, 17-21, 21-19, 15-12.

In the first set, the Lady Spikers held on to a 17-13 lead until the Lady Tamaraws nailed them and went on to an 8-0 run to win the set, 21-17. La Salle took the early advantage in the second set as they were up by as much as seven points. But with a series of good attacks from the FEU side, they managed to tie the set at 18-all. A crucial error from FEU put La Salle at set point and Cyd Demecillo scored the needed point in the following play to extend the match to a third and deciding set. The Lady Spikers were able to keep their momentum in the deciding set and managed to stay ahead of FEU until they reached match point, 14-10. Demecillo put the finishing touch for La Salle to take the win, 15-12.

The onslaught continued for the Lady Spikers as they brought home their second win that day against the UE Lady Warriors in two sets, 21-8, 21-10.

Momentum seemed to have carried over to their second game as the Lady Spikers dominated the Lady Warriors in two sets. In the first set, the Lady Spikers broke away from the Lady Warriors with a series of runs. They were able to limit the score of UE to single digits as they ended the set with a commanding lead of 13 points. The fury continued in the second set as the Lady Spikers kept the pressure on with a series of attacks that the Lady Warriors could not defend. With a score of 21-10, the Lady Spikers took the second set and the match with one more game remaining in the elimination round.

August 31

On the last day of the eliminations, the Lady Spikers finished with a two-set win against the ADMU Lady Eagles, 21-14, 21-13. Errors incurred by the Lady Eagles gave DLSU a huge lead in the early stages of the first set. Partnered with the smart plays executed by the Lady Spikers, DLSU took the set while maintaining their lead.

In the second set, the Lady Spikers quickly took the lead with solid attacks coming from both Fajardo and Demecillo. ADMU tried to trim down the lead with their attacks but DLSU prevented them in getting consecutive points. Eventually, DLSU won the set after a long rally in their match point.

On the other hand, the Green Spikers concluded the season with a loss against the UE Red Warriors, 21-19, 18-21, 15-11 but it was the first time in UAAP Season 77 that the Green Spikers won a set.

La Salle almost had the first set as they held a 19-17 lead against UE but the latter managed to contain the Green Spikers to take the first set. The Taft-based spikers played more consistent in the second set until UE tied the game at 17-all. However, smart attacks from Dimayuga and Movido helped them escape UE to win their very first set of the season, 21-18. UE was able to gain back their game in the deciding set. Although La Salle was just behind by one point, UE scored the final points to end the match in their favor, 15-11.

With the Lady Spikers as the second seeded team, they hold a twice-to-beat advantage and are set to face the winner in the face off between third place FEU and fourth place Adamson. The semifinal games will be on September 4 at the UE Caloocan Sand Court.