The DLSU Green Spikers tasted their first defeat of the season after losing against the FEU Tamaraws in straight sets, 25-16, 25-19, 26-24, earlier today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
FEU setter Cian Silang was named the player of the game after successfully providing 41 excellent sets to his teammates. On the offensive side, Gregorio Dolor and Jude Garcia scored double digits on 15 and 12 points, respectively, for the Tamaraws. Meanwhile, it was Raymark Woo who led all scorers after putting in 16 points behind 14 attacks, a block, and an ace for La Salle.
The Tamaraws opened the scoring in the first set which led into an exchange of points with either team not letting the other get two points ahead. At 8-all, DLSU scored three back-to-back points behind the efforts of Woo and Arjay Onia to put them at an advantage, 11-8. However, FEU answered back with an 11-2 run with the help of its strong blocks and attacks, taking the lead at 19-13. With La Salle unable to close the gap, FEU went on and took the set with a strong attack from Dolor, 25-16.
The second set saw FEU take an early lead after a 7-2 run from the errors made by La Salle and the collective effort of JP Bugaoan and Dolor. The Tamaraws maintained their lead for the most part of the set until consecutive mistakes haunted them, giving DLSU four points to put the scores at 17-16, in favor of the Green-and-White squad. However, FEU quickly took back the reigns to finish the set, 25-19 with a late 6-1 run.
Both the Green Spikers and the Tamaraws got fired up at the start of the third set as they rallied to get a significant lead over the other. At 4-all, DLSU pulled away with a 4-1 run to put the score at 8-5. FEU slowly trimmed the lead after La Salle committed multiple errors and finally caught up to tie the score at 13-all. The two teams engaged in a close fight, showcasing various plays to try to gain a lead over the other. At 24-all, Richard Solis and Dolor of the Tamaraws ended the set and match with two uncontested attacks, 26-24.
The Tamaraws outperformed DLSU after accumulating 41 attacks, seven blocks, and five service aces although recording 25 errors. On the other hand, La Salle made 28 attacks, three blocks, three aces, and 23 errors..
“Masyadong na-pressure sa first game,” Green Spikers head coach Nes Pamilar said as he shared his thoughts on the performance of the team. “Hindi ganyan ang tinetraining [namin], layo-layo sa ginagawa [namin]. Talagang nawala sa focus.”
The Green Spikers will aim to bounce back in their next game against the UST Growling Tigers. Their match will be held on February 11, Saturday, at 10 am in the FilOil Flying V Arena.
The scores
DLSU 59: Woo 16, Onia 7, Dumago 4, Del Pilar 2, Jose 2, Bacon 2, R. Asia 1
FEU 76: Dolor 15, Garcia 12, Bugaoan 7, Solis 6, Quiel 6, Silang 4, Camcam 2, Bautista 1
