TIGER POWER

Josh Ybañez stepped up to the plate and delivered the goods during crunch time to power University of Santo Tomas (UST) to a 25-23, 25-19, 28-26 win over Far Eastern University (FEU) to force a do-or-die match in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 86 men’s volleyball Final Four on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Ybañez dished out 16 points from 15 attacks and a block, while Sherwin Umandal provided additional firepower with 14 points from 56 percent attack efficiency.

The Tamaraws failed to keep up with the Golden Spikers, scoring from all over the place, with Dux Yambao effectively sharing the ball, and finishing with 17 excellent sets and one point.

Gboy de Vega and Paul Colinares wound up with 10 points apiece, while Rainier Flor carved out seven points. Jay Rack de la Noche also chipped in three points for UST.

FEU’s adjustments came a little too late in the third set as Andrei Delicana spammed the Golden Spikers by hammering down attacks in the left-side corner of the floor to force a 4-0 run and establish a 13-11 lead.

The Golden Spikers, however, worked as a unit to close out the gap at 14-14.

It was a back-and-forth affair throughout the rest of the third set until Ybañez took flight to tie the game at 19-all after the Tamaraws miscalculated when they received the ball.

Jayjay Javelona blocked De La Noche as Tamaraws regained a one-point lead but Ybañez, coupled with the iron-clad defense coming from Avila and Colinares, successfully contained Delicana, Javelona, and Zhydryx Saavedra, to establish a three-point lead at 23-20.

FEU’s Martin Bugaoan then forced an attack. Umandal tried to answer back but committed an error instead, tying the game at 23-23.

Tamaraws traded bullets, but the Golden Spikers prevailed in the fourth match point when De Vega tipped the ball over to the other side of the net, and Ybañez finished it with an attack down the line.

“I just listened to the instructions of the coaches to trust in my attacks, and when covering. Of course, when the ball goes up, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be a kill. But, my teammates gave me confidence because I know they’re behind me so that when I block the ball, it won’t be a kill, too,” De Vega said.

“We’re so motivated right now since we defeated them in straight sets, our confidence got high. But it doesn’t mean we’ll underestimate them. We’ll still think they need to win,” Ybañez said.

The Golden Spikers successfully contained Javelona to just six points while Saavedra and Bugaoan’s 14 and 10 points apiece were not enough for the Tamaraws to get the job done in one game.