By NIKOLE JAVIER
Defending champion De La Salle showed steely resolve this time as it bounced back from an opening set hiccup to outlast a gritty Adamson side, 17-25, 25-19, 25-11, 25-22, in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament on Wednesday, April 17, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The last stretch of the eliminations have been nothing but challenging for the Lady Spikers, who for the fourth straight time played minus reigning Rookie of the Year-Most Valuable Player Angel Canino.
The power-hitting Canino has been sidelined after the Holy Break as she is nursing an injury.
With the win, La Salle improve 10-2, tying University of Santo Tomas and National University for the lead, making the race for the two coveted twice-to-beat advantages in the Final Four became more intense and hotter.
Without Canino in the rotation, La Salle suffered a cruel four-set loss to the Lady Bulldogs three days, a defeat they still felt even in the first set.
Good thing, sophomore opposite spiker Shevana Laput was there to lead the La Salle’s fightback. She finished with a season-high 24 points built on 22 attacks and two kill blocks.
Veteran middle blocker Thea Gagate added 12 point on nine attacks and three blocks to her name, while setter skipper Julia Coronel tallied 19 excellent sets.
As if Canino’s absence was not worrisome enough for the reigning champs at the crucial stage of the tournament, La Salle lost another wing spiker to an apparent injury with Baby Jyne Soreño colliding with a teammate on a dig attempt in the first set, hurting her shoulder in the process.
Amid the troubles they encountered in the opening set, the Lady Falcons managed to erase a 17-15 deficit via a deadly 10-0 finishing kick to draw first blood.
“Actually nung first set sobrang tentative ang galaw ng team. Walang gusto mag lead kaya ‘yun and naging resulta. Walang nag-lead so nagiging pangit yung galaw. Parang hindi sila magkakakilala sa loob kasi walang leader. Buti na lang nanalo at nakuha ‘yung second set and so on. A win is a win pa rin talaga kahit masama ‘yung laro,” said La Salle assistant coach Noel Orcullo.
“Kung sino [available] maglaro or kung sino ang wala wag hanapin. Kung ano man maitutulong ng mga andiyan to play gawin niyo na. Give your all. Dapat step up bawat isa,” he added.
After the initial shock, Soreño went out of the court after being checked up by the team’s medical staff but with a sling on her shoulder.
Jen Villegas paced the Lady Falcons with 16 points, while Ayesha Juegos had 10 markers on the losing end.
