Armed with a three-game winning streak, the DLSU Lady Spikers, alongside the ADMU Lady Eagles, remain undefeated in the tournament, 3-0. Despite unusual slow starts to initiate their matches, the La Salle squad, in their past games this season, relied on strong endgame rallies to seize a comeback victory.
Today at 2 pm at The Arena in San Juan, the Lady Spikers continue their quest for title redemption as they seek to register their fourth straight victory at the expense of the resilient UP Lady Maroons.
![KBP_1523 [1600x1200]](http://thelasallian.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/KBP_1523-1600x1200.jpg)
Ending the previous season with an elimination round sweep, the Lady Spikers, obviously, have not dropped a match against UP, at least not in recent memory. However, the Lady Maroons, although one of the perennial cellar dwellers in the tournament, always refused to leave a match without a strong fight back. The resurging UP ended last season with a 3-11 win-loss card, enough to say that they have improved compared to their previous outings.
This UAAP Season 77, the Lady Maroons’ notched their first win via an upset victory against the equally gritty UST Golden Tigresses. The victory, which shocked not only UST but other league contenders as well, was enough to say that the competiton has become tighter than ever. And as such, despite their poor showing in the previous seasons, it is safe to say that all the other teams can not count UP out just yet.
In their stunning victory against UST, UP relied on an adequate floor defense to ward off several drop shots from their opponent’s attackers. With their capain Nicole Tiamzon and Katherine Bersola leading the pack with 19 and 16 points, respectively, UP has shown composure, thereby trouncing UST in a tight four-set match.
Meanwhile, for the Lady Spikers, the usual offensive powerhouse emanating from Ara Galang, Desiree Cheng, Cyd Demecillo, and Mika Reyes provide for the squad’s scoring rhythm. However, with poor floor defense and unforced errors somehow taking its toll against the former three-peat champs, the Lady Spikers must stick to the strategy drafted by Coach Ramil de Jesus in order to not carelessly prolong the matches.
In later’s match, the Lady Spikers should watch out for UP’s frontline attackers in Bersola and Tiamzon, in order to score the usual blocks that La Salle is known for. Also, the Lady Spikers must also find the holes in UP’s defense as the Lady Maroons’ ace libero Princess Gaiser has been doing a good job in her digs against quick drop shots.
