In their journey to strengthen their Final Four bid for, the DLSU Green Spikers were dealt another setback after succumbing to straight sets, 22-25, 23-25, 22-25, against rivals ADMU Blue Eagles in their UAAP Men’s Volleyball Tournament showdown earlier today, April 11, at the FilOil EcoOil Centre.
Yoyong Mendoza boosted the La Salle offense as he led the team with a 13-point outing in the match, alongside Eugene Gloria and Chris Hernandez, who had 10 and eight points, respectively.
On the other end of the court, Jian Salarzon was a thorn in the Green-and-White’s side as he led the Blue Eagles with an unmatched game-high 21 points, while Amil Pacinio and Emmanuel Okeke contributed 13 and 12 points respectively.
Deadlocked and dropped
The Green Spikers came out of the gates aggressively against their rivals, immediately dictating the tempo of the opening frame. Hernandez and Eugene Gloria set the tone early by scoring the first two points off back-to-back drop balls. Mendoza then widened the gap with two consecutive markers for a 4-1 cushion. The Green-and-White’s offense flowed seamlessly as Bangit delivered slick one-handed sets to Issa Ousseini.
Despite the hot start, Ateneo refused to back down and slowly chipped away at the deficit. The green shirts allowed the first deadlock of the match at 14-all after Salarzon successfully pierced through the La Salle block. From there, the set transformed into a gutsy back-and-forth affair highlighted by exhausting rallies.
However, DLSU yielded momentum late when Paulo Medino gave Ateneo its first lead at 21-20, immediately following it up with a service ace to build a crucial two-point cushion. The Taft-based squad found themselves trailing 23-20 after the Blue Eagles unleashed a 4-0 run. Although a challenge and a subsequent timeout briefly interrupted Ateneo’s rhythm, the deficit was tough to erase. Following a broken play and an overhead receive, Hernandez managed to keep the Green Spikers’ hopes alive as he made up for previous attack errors by delivering a sharp crosscourt to delay the set point at 24-22. In the end, La Salle’s efforts were not enough as Okeke delivered the final blow from the back row to steal the first set, 25-22.
Snatched away
In an effort to even the odds, the Green Spikers were more determined than ever as Gloria opened up the second set with a point off the blockers. Both squads proceeded to go neck and neck with no clear momentum on either side of the court, trading spikes, 7-all. DLSU remained adamant in their reception coverage despite early strikes from the Blue Eagles, allowing counterattacks on the other end.
The Green-and-White began to establish a foothold which was mounted by the offensive trio of Layug, Hernandez, and Mendoza, sparking a scoring run after a service ace by Hernandez took the set to a sizable 11-7 lead. Gloria continued to set the tone with well-placed crosscourt strikes that stunned the Katipunan defense while Mendoza denied with block points to slowly inflate the lead to a seven-point advantage, 16-9. With the finish line seemingly in reach, La Salle seemed to be firing on all cylinders.
Amid the green dominance, Salarzon ignited a Blue Eagle comeback, quelling the Green-and-White with consecutive spikes, 16-13. DLSU began to waver with attack and service errors as Salarzon paced Ateneo with his fiery hands by notching three straight markers to close the gap within one, 19-18. The individual performance also sparked inspiration within Pacinio and Okeke as they joined the frame, putting the match at a late 22-all deadlock. Gloria could only respond to the blue barrage with a spike into the middle, but it was all too much for the Green Spikers to handle as Pacino put the final dagger to snatch the set, 25-23, prompting the green shirts to head back to the drawing board.
Valiant stand falls short
Facing a daunting two-set deficit, DLSU entered the third frame desperate to replicate their Round 1 heroics against their archrival and force a decider. The set opened with a tense exchange as La Salle’s offensive timing issues and consecutive overpasses allowed Ateneo to capitalize. Then, Okeke’s power spike sparked a run that gave the Blue Eagles an early 6-3 advantage.
Anchoring their mid-set resurgence from the service line, the Green Spikers refused to fold quietly. Ousseini took charge by delivering consecutive aces, with the second one punishing an over-receive, to completely erase the deficit and give La Salle a narrow 16-15 lead. This ignited a dramatic exchange of heavy blows, highlighted by Hernandez overpowering a triple block to keep the scoreboard balanced throughout.
The decisive sequence arrived deadlocked at 20-all. Okeke reclaimed control for Ateneo with a monstrous spike, followed by a Salarzon hit that called for a desperate La Salle timeout at 22-20. Pushed to the brink, Gloria fiercely willed the team back with critical hits to cut the deficit to a single point, 23-22. Consequently, the comeback attempt expired as Salarzon found the line to bring Ateneo to match point, and a costly out-of-bounds backrow attack from Gloria sealed the Green Spikers’ fate, handing the Blue Eagles the set and the sweep, 25-22.
Riding on a slim hope of a Final Four berth, the DLSU Green Spikers look to end Round 2 on a high note with two matches remaining as they take on the UE Red Warriors on Wednesday, April 15, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
The Scores:
DLSU 0 – Mendoza 13, Gloria 10, Hernandez 8, Ousseini 8, Layug 4, Bangit 0, Fortuna 0, Magalaman 0, Magallanes 0, Mendoza 0, Regidor 0, Retiro 0, Rodriguez, 0, R. Flores 0, Thomas 0
ADMU 3 – Salarzon 21, Pacinio 13, Okeke 12, Alejos 4, Castro 3, Gutierrez 2, Almadro 0, Atendido 0, Batas 0, Crisostomo 0, De Castro 0, Medino 0, Reyes 0, Sendon 0, Taluban 0, Yu 0
Set Scores: 22-25, 23-25, 22-25
