AFTER five years of waiting, the University of Santo Tomas (UST) is back in the UAAP women’s volleyball finals after beating defending champions De La Salle University (DLSU) in their Season 86 Final Four clash on Sunday.
In front of 19,505 fans at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, the Golden Tigresses secured a heart-stopping 25-20, 16-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-7 win against the Taft-based squad.
Despite having a twice-to-beat advantage, the España-based squad made sure to close it out and need not to use the bonus. Meanwhile, UST head coach Kungfu Reyes and his team said they had a hard time adjusting to DLSU.
“Well una, syempre masaya kasi nga ito ulit kami, nandito na naman at pumasok ulit sa finals, and syempre it’s a honor na nakalaban ulit namin ang La Salle,” said Reyes.
“Gaya ng sinabi ko last game sa kanila, hindi mo pwedeng biru-biruin o ipagkibit balikat ang La Salle. Tulad na lang nung adjustment nila, napakalaking adjustment na ginawa nilang outside spiker si Laput from opposite,” he added.
As strange as it may seem, but history might have repeated itself because UST eliminated the Taft-based squad exactly five years ago, on May 5, 2019, in the same venue to advance to the finals.
UST now has their eyes on the prize to bag home their 17th league championship, and possibly end a 14-year drought since the Tigresses won against La Salle in Season 72 in 2010.
As expected in Sunday’s game, rookie sensation Angge Poyos recorded another jaw-dropping performance with 28 points on 25 attacks, two aces, and a block, while Jonna Perdido backed it up with her own 18 points and 12 receptions.
Meanwhile, fan-favorite team captain Detdet Pepito had 18 digs and 16 excellent receptions of her own, while Cassie Carballo had 18 excellent sets, scoring six of her own with the final service ace in the thriller.
“Sobrang honored talaga ako maging captain ng ganitong promising team. Nagpapasalamat ako sa teammates ko kasi talagang tinrabaho namin every point, every day, every training,” said Pepito.
Carballo was also astounded with the result of their daily sacrifices and hard work to prepare for this juggernaut matchup.
“Sobrang grateful po ako sa panalo na ito, kasi talagang pinusuan talaga namin ‘yung laro today, and lahat nagtrabaho. Ayun sobrang saya ko lang and sobrang grateful ako sa panalo na ‘to kasi alam ko ‘yung sacrifices namin,” she said.
On the other end, Shevana Laput led the Lady Spikers once more with 20 points while Thea Gagate, who played her final game in a La Salle jersey, left it all on the court, totaling 16 points including six blocks.
Angel Canino, who played in her second game after missing five matches, ended up with 14 points, 12 digs, and eight receptions. Jyne Soreño, who also missed some time, provided 11 points off the bench.
Meanwhile, in the other Final Four match, the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws forced a rubber match against the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs on Wednesday, after a surprising 3-0 sweep on the top-seeded team last Saturday.
Once concluded, the Golden Tigresses will then identify who they’ll face come finals. For now, the España-based squad will continue to prepare for the final phase of their season, with hopes of bringing the crown back to their beloved community.
