Lady Bulldogs score second victory

Alyssa Solomon powered defending champion National University in turning back upset-conscious Adamson University, 25-22, 25-19, 25-27, 22-25, 15-10, for its second straight win in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 85 women's volleyball tournament on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The sophomore winger registered a career-high 28 points she collected off 27 kills and an ace to help the Lady Bulldogs stretch their winning streak to 20 games dating back to the pandemic-cancelled Season 82 in 2020.

But her efforts almost went for naught when NU got a serious scare from its determined rival.   

The Lady Falcons came back from a four-point deficit in the fifth set to knot it at 4-4 before the Lady Bulldogs regained control. Adamson threatened NU one last time, 10-9, after Solomon's attack hit the net.

Reigning Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Bella Belen answered with back-to-back crosscourt hits to spark the Lady Bulldogs' closing 5-1 barrage capped by a Cams Lamina ace to close out the two-hour, three-minute battle. 

"Adamson forced us to our limits. This is a good experience for us as a team because last year we didn't get a chance to play in a fifth set," head coach Karl Dimaculangan said of the Lady Bulldogs' first five-setter since their 22-25, 25-23, 20-25, 25-20, 15-13 win over University of Santo Tomas back on 4 March 2020. 

"At least we got to experience this early so they'll know what to do if the match extends into a fifth set. Hopefully, we gained a lot of lessons from this experience," he added.

Meanwhile, UST barged into the win column as it vented its ire on Far Eastern University, 25-16, 28-26, 25-21, to tie its victim at 1-1 win-loss slate.

Eya Laure led the balanced scoring of the Tigresses, putting up 17 points while Jonna Perdido and Renren Penafiel chipped in with 12 and 10 points.  

Alyzza Devosora and Jovelyn Fernandez led the Lady Tamaraws with 14 and 13 points, respectively.   

Belen finished with 23 points she laced with 12 digs and 18 excellent receptions while Ces Robles and Erin Pangilinan had 13 and 12 markers for NU.

The Lady Bulldogs missed their chance of closing the match in the third set when Pangilinan served out that tied the frame at 24. Solomon gave NU back the lead only to see it lock again at 25 after her service error.

Kate Santiago, who finished with 20 points, won the third frame for Adamson with back-to-back kills.

Rookie Trisha Tubu had 16 points while Lorne Toring added 12 for the Lady Falcons, who dropped to 1-1 slate.