The DLSU Green Spikers turned the tables and upset the UST Growling Tigers in a statement straight-set affair, 25-18, 25-20, 25-23, to force a rubber match in their 2024 V-League Men’s Division semifinals series yesterday, September 22, at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.
Taft Tower Joshua Magalaman showed out for the Green Spikers in Herculean fashion as he chipped in 13 points off seven attacks, four blocks, and two aces to be hailed Player of the Game. Meanwhile, rookie ace Emmanuel Hernandez provided double-digit support by notching 11 points, while Rui Ventura prodigiously chalked up nine of his own.
In the Growling Tigers’ valiant losing efforts, the rookies tried to keep their team in contention as Al-Bukharie Sali contributed 10 points off seven attacks and three blocks, while Jan Julian Macam produced six points off six attacks.
Promising start
Determined to redeem themselves after a first-game loss, the Green Spikers reminded the crowd why they are the reigning champions. In a back-and-forth first set, the match immediately reached its sixth deadlock through Magalaman’s quick attack, 8-all.
Boosted by a block-shattering bomb and a one-two deceiver by setter Eco Adajar, Magalaman continued to display his prowess from all corners of the court as he delivered two straight aces to finally break away with a three-point gutter, 12-9. Eugene Gloria’s struggles from the series opener seemingly spilled over as he continued to commit unforced errors that kept their opponents in close contention, 16-15.
Magalaman proved to be the hero for the men in green as he rapidly made up for lost points with two quicks and a solid block, 19-16. UST’s Rey Miguel De Vega and Sali retaliated with backrow and crosscourt attacks to keep the Green Spikers within alarming reach. The Taft-based team seized back control through Hernandez, who proved to be the go-to spiker as he capped a decisive 5-0 run with another crosscourt hit, cementing a seven-point win in the first set, 25-18.
Too hot to handle
After a dominant opening-set triumph, the Green Spikers wasted no time doubling down with another lopsided affair in the second set. Gloria, who had been quiet in the previous set, came alive with two straight points off a tip and joust to quickly give La Salle a three-point cushion early on, 4-1.
The men from España promptly responded with a quick from Paul Colinares and two successive rejections to tie the match, 4-all. Akin to the opening moments of the first set, the match reached eight deadlocks by the tenth point as the teams stuffed the scoreboard with both offensive plays and crucial errors in a seesaw exhibition, 10-all.
As if on cue, Magalaman emerged once again with three straight points off two blocks and a quick to boost a 10-2 run sparked by a combination play and topped off by a down-the-line dagger, both courtesy of Uriel Mendoza, to give La Salle a comfortable eight-point lead, 20-12.
However, the Tigers refused to back down without a fight as they capitalized on several errors from the defending champions to exact an 8-4 run, forcing La Salle to call for a timeout in hopes of breaking their foes’ rebuilding momentum, 24-20. And just in time, Mendoza finally puts a winning punctuation to the set with a signature crosscourt bomb, 25-20.
Arrows flew, comeback blew
Despite a fierce fightback from the Tigers in the final set, the Green Spikers had the last laugh as they held out until the end to make it a clean sweep. The Green Spikers took control with two rapid blocks by Eric Layug to open the set, combined with an ace from Hernandez and two bangers by Ventura quickly gave the Green-and-White a comfortable five-point lead, 6-1.
The Growling Tigers soon found their footing, easily reading and shutting down Hernandez twice in a row while La Salle squandered the lead down to one, 9-8. A third denial on the rookie ace switched the lead in favor of the men in yellow, 12-11, prompting DLSU to call for a timeout.
In another display of a balanced match-up between both teams in the offensive and defensive facets, the match once again became a game of hot potato as the lead constantly got exchanged until a placement shot from Adajar allowed the Green Spikers to regain control and alerted the Tigers to call for a timeout, 21-19.
The final set continued to be a close affair as Macam and Sali quickly answered back with their signature hits alongside De Vega’s denial of Ventura, which put the set at a nail-biting deadlock, 23-all.
Fortunately, after a crucial timeout from Head Coach Jose Roque, Hernandez denied a soft tip by Sali while Ventura braved the opposing defense and shattered right through it to humbly edge out the Tigers and push the series to one final deciding encounter, 25-23.
The Green-and-White now set their sights on the highly anticipated do-or-die match against the UST Growling Tigers, with hopes of clinching the series and earning a Finals berth as they continue to defend their crown on Wednesday, September 25, at 5 pm at the same venue.
The Scores:
DLSU 3 – Magalaman 13, Hernandez 11, Ventura 9, Layug 6, Mendoza 6, Adajar 4, Gloria 3, Guerrero 0
UST 0 – Sali 10, Macam 6, De Vega 5, Valera 5, P. Colinares 4, Umandal 3, Yambao 3, Alabar 0, Avila 0, Salvador 0
Set Scores: 25-18, 25-20, 25-23
