Desperate to keep their Final Four hopes alive, the DLSU Green Spikers’ postseason campaign came to a crashing halt as they fell to the UE Red Warriors in a grueling sweep, 21-25, 26-28, 24-26, in Round 2 of the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Volleyball Tournament earlier today, April 15, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Issa Ousseini spearheaded the Taft-based squad’s offense with 16 points through 10 attacks, five blocks, and a single ace, while Yoyong Mendoza and Eugene Gloria added 11 and 10 points, respectively, to keep the team within striking distance.
The Recto squad’s unstoppable offense on the other hand was led by Raquim Aceron and RG Piojo, who scored 19 and 14 points, respectively.
Costly errors
Both squads traded early points, with Mendoza and Ousseini answering the attacks from UE standouts Aceron and Piojo. The Green-and-White capitalized on the overpasses of the Red Warriors to keep the score tight, reaching 12-all after a crosscourt kill from Mendoza. However, an exchange of net touch violations and service errors prevented La Salle from establishing a rhythm before UE reached the 13-point mark first.
Coming out of the technical timeout, the Red Warriors capitalized on the miscommunications of La Salle, mounting a 7-1 run fueled by the anticipated blocks of Xjhann Camaymayan to establish a 17-12 cushion. Facing a five-point deficit, the Green Spikers attempted a late resurgence behind NJ Bangit, MJ Fortuna, and Ousseini, cutting the lead down to a single point, 21-20. Despite the late push, the early unforced errors of La Salle proved insurmountable, after totaling 10 in the opening frame alone. Piojo halted the momentum of DLSU, and a final attack error from the Lasallians handed the first set to UE, 25-21.
Down to the wire
Eager to bounce back, La Salle displayed better offensive execution at the start of the second set. The Lasallians relied on the connection between Bangit and Ousseini to secure early points. Mendoza continued his aggressive play on the right flank, exchanging hits with Aceron to keep the set at a deadlock, 9-all. Despite back-to-back blocks from Gloria and Ousseini, UE matched their intensity to bring the tight frame to 13-all after an off-the-block hit from Aceron.
The tight exchange of points continued as Hernandez and Paolo Layug found the gaps in the defense. A service ace from Gloria gave La Salle a promising three-point advantage late in the set, 21-18. However, the Red Warriors tightened their net defense, executing crucial blocks to force a 22-all tie. In the extended set, both squads traded match points and defensive stops with Ousseini managing to save a set point with a massive block to tie it, but a crucial service error from DLSU immediately gave the advantage back to UE. The Red Warriors then sealed the exhausting frame with another kill block, 28-26, pushing the Green Spikers to the brink of a sweep.
Close but not quite
With the game beginning to turn into a low-hanging fruit for the Red Warriors, they further leaned on the ever-reliable Aceron to convert two straight points early as UE trudged ahead, 2-0. Meanwhile, the Green Spikers’ rattled confidence continued to disrupt their own plans, but Gloria and Ousseini made their presence felt, keeping La Salle within reach, 7-5. Looking to break the game wide open, Piojo launched strong, diverse attacks to the horror of DLSU’s unsolvable first-ball problems. With a seven-point mountain to climb, Joshua Magalaman delivered a quick attack off the bench, which might have been the Green Spikers’ missing puzzle piece. Nonetheless, UE steadily built a steady net defense, maintaining a comfortable lead at 17-9.
A back-and-forth of off-the-block exchanges followed, as Hernandez recovered from his early miscues to help La Salle trim the gap to 20-15. Raising an alarm for the red shirts who committed untimely errors of their own, Aceron, again at the front line, brought the scoreline to 23-19. Gloria, on the other side, saw his own hit boomerang as UE reached match point.
The Green Spikers, however, mounted a late stand with Ousseini’s lead at the net to cut the deficit, 24-22. Following Jio Rada’s missed attack, Piojo’s surprise hit from the pipe was easily shut down as the game threatened to tip over DLSU’s side. Aceron then struck the empty middle, briefly denting the Green Spikers’ composure, but Gloria’s antenna error ultimately handed UE the win, 24-26.
Out of Final Four contention, the Green-and-White now look to halt their late-season slide as they face the NU Bulldogs on Sunday, April 19, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
DLSU 0 – Ousseini 16, Mendoza 11, Gloria 10, Hernandez 7, Fortuna 4, Layug 2, Magallanes 1, Magalaman 1, Bangit 0, Retiro 0, Regidor 0, N. Flores 0, Ventura 0, Rodriguez 0, R. Flores 0, Abut 0
UE 3 – Aceron 19, Piojo 14, Camaymayan 9, Perit 8, Rada 4, Roca 3, Nabora 0, Libot 0, Villanueva 0, Maglay 0, Ancheta 0, Yturralde 0, Bicar 0, Budias 0, Malit 0, Gabotero 0
Set Scores: 21-25, 26-28, 24-26
