UAAP: Lady Spikers dismantle UE in straight sets

The DLSU Lady Spikers notched a fast and easy straight set win against the UE Lady Warriors, 25-6, 25-17, 25-17, earlier today at the Mall of Asia Arena. Kim Fajardo was hailed as the player of the game in the victory, finishing with five points from two blocks, two attacks, and an ace.

The Lady Spikers seemingly toyed with the Lady Warriors in the first set, disallowing the UE squad of any opportunity to create an offensive rhythm. With La Salle dominating both the offensive and defensive departments, UE was limited to only six points throughout the set. As the Lady Spikers familiarized themselves with the Lady Warriors’ strategy, the set was settled with a lopsided La Salle advantage, 25-6.

Things remained similar in the second set, with La Salle looking to carry the momentum that they possessed in the initial set. UE sought to fight back, nonetheless, even as they struggled to complete most of their offensive plays against the Lady Spikers’ tall frontline.

Mika Reyes took advantage of the loopholes in UE’s defense, earning an easy point with a timely spike against confused UE defenders. This put La Salle at a 12-5 lead midway through the second set, an advantage which the Lady Spikers held on to for the rest of the set. Ara Galang, Cyd Demecillo, and Carol Cerveza scored consecutive points to place La Salle nearer to set point, 21-10. However, lapses on the part of the Lady Spikers, coupled with a late fight back by the Lady Warriors, led to a silent additional seven points for UE. La Salle eventually took the second set, 25-17, despite the late efforts of the UE offense.

The third set almost seemed like a different story, with the UE Lady Warriors pacing themselves against La Salle midway through the set. With UE answering almost every La Salle point, the early parts of the third set saw several deadlocks. Consecutive well-timed plays by Lady Spikers Desiree Cheng and Galang allowed DLSU to eventually pull away, as they were able to put themselves at a 19-13 advantage.

The Lady Warriors were unable to come up with an answer to this huge La Salle run. And as Reyes brought DLSU to within match point, 24-16, the match was already obviously decided in favor of the Lady Spikers. Ultimately, the third set ended with a 25-17 victory for the Lasallian volleybelles.