After a winless start to the season, the DLSU Lady Archers finally earned their first victory after defeating the UP Lady Maroons, 76-64, earlier today at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Charmaine Torres led DLSU with 17 points, seven rebounds, and four steals while team captain Marga Dagdagan also played a vital role in the winning effort, recording 16 points, five rebounds, and three steals. Meanwhile, Daphne Esplana led the Lady Maroons, finishing with a game high of 19 points in the losing effort.
Heating up from beyond
The Lady Maroons, led by Pesky Pesquera and Marian Domingo, showcased intensity early, as they led La Salle by six points at the three minute mark of the first quarter, 8-14. However, with the pressure that DLSU put defensively in the low post, the Lady Archers were able to turn things around with points coming from the charity stripe and a timely triple from Lauryn Del Campo. DLSU went on a 9-0 run to end the first quarter with the lead, 17-14.
The team from Taft continued dominating the court in the second quarter as three-point shots were pouring in, one after another. DLSU, which banked on an 18-2 run led by Dagdagan with eight points, was able to prevent UP from getting any second chance points. The drought continued for the Lady Maroons as they only managed to score again with four minutes left in the period as Carmela Bascon knocked down a jumper.
With the tough inside presence of the Lady Maroons, La Salle had to take more field goals from the perimeter. Nevertheless, the Lady Archers were able to execute and were able to score 21 perimeter points compared to UP’s eight. At halftime, DLSU led the Diliman-based squad by 15 points, 41-26.
Evenly matched
UP started to close the gap with Therese Medina completing a three-point play to start the third quarter. In the quarter, the Lady Archers started to stray away from the three-point line and would constantly look for the open man near the basket. However, the Lady Archers’ shots ceased to fall. As the Lady Maroons went on full-court pressure, they held the Green-and-White to only 16 points in the period, six points less than UP’s in the quarter.
At the end of the period, the team from Katipunan continued to trim the deficit, but this time, La Salle had an answer for each blow they received as the quarter closed. The Lady Maroons finished the third quarter with an improved effort, but still trailed, 57-48.
It was a tightly contested match in the last quarter as both teams fought things out and tried to outhustle one another. UP’s Esplana and Iriss Isip struck first to score the first points for the Lady Maroons in the last quarter. Nonetheless, the Lady Archers continued their offensive onslaught as they pushed their lead to 14 with another three-point basket courtesy of Del Campo.
Lady Maroon Isip continued to play well during the last minutes as she was able to cut the deficit to six points. However, DLSU’s Dagdagan and Joehanna Arciga were both awarded a charity toss to push the lead back to 10, 74-64. Torres’s shot was the last field goal made in the game as La Salle’s notched its first win of the tournament, improving their standing to one win and three losses, 76-64.
The DLSU Lady Archers will look to snatch their second win of the season as they will face the UST Growling Tigresses on September 30, 8 am, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The scores:
DLSU 76 – Torres 17, Dagdagan 16, Figueroa 9, Jimenez 8, Arciga 7, Del Campo 6, Castillo 5, Vergara 4, Paraiso 2, Nunez 2, Javier 0
UP 64 – Esplana 19, Isip 10, Pesquera 8, Medina 7, Tan 7, Domingo 6, Bascon 4, Ordoveza 2, Gatpatan 1, Cruz 0, Rodas 0, Amar 0, Lapid 0, Viray 0, Ongsiako 0
Quarter Scores: 17-14, 41-26, 57-48, 76-64
