The DLSU Green Spikers aimed high and shut down archrivals ADMU Blue Eagles with a bold straight-set statement win, 25-21, 31-29, 25-19, in their 2024 V-League Men’s Division preliminary showdown to sustain their unscathed record earlier today, August 18, at the Paco Arena.
Spearheading the La Salle efforts was Player of the Game Glen Ventura, who scored a game-high 16 points off of 14 attacks and two blocks, while Eugene Gloria and Joshua Magalaman supplied 13 and nine points, respectively.
Despite the loss, Jian Salarzon showed out for Ateneo with 15 points, while Kennedy Batas scored nine points.
Error-plagued win
As the rivalry showdown commenced, the Green Spikers quickly drew first blood. Ventura immediately put La Salle on the scoreboard with a bomb through a triple block and a firm shutdown on Batas, 2-0. Despite valiant check balls from Batas to keep the blue shirts at bay, Ateneo’s unwarranted errors boosted the defending champions to hold a twofold lead entering the first technical timeout, 8-4. But the King Eagle Salarzon slowly but surely made it work for the Katipunan-based squad as his crosscourt bombs alongside the Green-and-White’s errors put Ateneo in the lead for the first time, 17-16.
However, after a back-and-forth exchange of the leads, the Green Spikers maintained composure as Gloria’s down-the-line dagger and Magalaman’s denial of Jettlee Gopio’s quick attempt brought back La Salle’s gutter to push their foes to call for a timeout, 21-19. After an exchange of kills raining from both ends, Ateneo’s crucial net faults gave the spikers from Taft three set points to spare. Despite a last-minute timeout by the Blue Eagles, Magalaman wasted no time to snatch the opening set with a soft quick for DLSU, 25-21.
Shot for shot
The squad from Taft set the tone early in the second set, scoring two quick points through a Uriel Mendoza drop-ball and a Chris Hernandez service ace. The Green Spikers quickly built off of this start, going on a 5-1 run to kickstart the second set. Unforced errors quickly plagued DLSU, allowing the Blue Eagles an opportunity to mount their own offensive led by Gopio and Salarzon, who both scored on attacks to close the gap to two points, 10-8.
After calling for a timeout, a rejuvenated Green Spikers took over, going on another run led by Ventura who was starting to heat up after a quiet start to the set. Despite this, the Blue Eagles were still able to keep the score close thanks to unforced errors on the La Salle side as they headed to the final stretch tied at 18-all.
The Green-and-White locked in just in time in the clutch, outplaying the Blue Eagles as they regained a comfortable three-point lead, 24-21, thanks to some timely plays by Ventura and Magalaman, forcing ADMU to call a timeout. This proved to be a lifesaver, as the Blue Eagles came out with renewed vigor, winning three straight points to put them right back in the game. Needing just two points each to win the set, both teams put forth a Herculean effort to score on back-to-back possessions, leading to an exciting finish.
The Blue Eagles landed the first blow courtesy of a service error from DLSU, but the Green Spikers immediately answered as they forced a net touch violation from the ADMU defense after a long rally to tie it up at 25-all. With both of their teams searching for the finishing strike, Ventura and Salarzon had a classic shootout, as both players traded spikes as the scoreboard swelled up to 29-all. However, it was Magalaman who ended up being the hero for DLSU as he finally finished off the stubborn Blue Eagles with a drop-shot and a spike, 31-29.
Steady wins the race
The final set saw the Green Spikers in their fiercest mode as they drubbed their rivals with the widest margin of the match. A 4-0 run on the side of the Archers courtesy of Magalaman’s commanding quick and Gloria’s out-of-system plays immediately gave La Salle a comfortable five-point cushion entering the first technical timeout, 8-3. Batas and Salarzon continued to show out to keep their team in contention with blockbusters of their own, but setter Jerico Adajar’s playmaking and sudden one-two power plays proved to be too much for their foes as La Salle’s left-and-right offense kept their lead safe entering the last technical timeout, 16-12.
As if not enough, unforced errors from both teams cost more for Ateneo as the lead widened to six following Mendoza’s explosive first appearance in the match with a successful check, crosscourt, and block on Salarzon to prompt another timeout from the side of blue, 22-16. In the homestretch of the match, Player of the Game Ventura’s crosscourt hit gave the defending champions seven match points to play with. And despite a two-point effort by the Eagles, Mendoza wanted it done as he put an exclamation to the rivalry match with a classic backrow bomb, 25-19.
The DLSU Green Spikers will continue zooming through their title defense campaign as they lock horns next with the FEU Tamaraws on August 25, at 3 pm, at the same venue.
The Scores:
DLSU 3 – Ventura 16, Gloria 13, Magalaman 9, Hernandez 6, Layug 4, Mendoza 4, Adajar 3, de Castro 0, Guerrero 0, Marata 0
ADMU 0 – Salarzon 15, Batas 9, Gopio 5, Alejos 4, Reyes 3, Taluban 3, Almadro 0, De Castro 0, Sendon 0
Set Scores: 25-21, 31-29, 25-19
