La Salle flips script on UST, wins playoff to nail twice-to-beat bonus

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Banking on their vaunted net defense, the La Salle Lady Spikers thwart the UST Golden Tigresses in the playoff for the second seed to claim the last Final Four bonus

MANILA, Philippines – La Salle refused to let a final crack at a precious twice-to-beat protection go to waste.

Banking on their vaunted net defense, the Lady Spikers thwarted the UST Golden Tigresses, 23-25, 25-20, 30-28, 29-27, in the grueling playoff for the second seed to clinch the last Final Four bonus in the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday, April 30.

Angel Canino and Shevana Laput took turns in the pivotal fourth set where La Salle erased a late five-point deficit as the Lady Spikers turned the tables on the Tigresses after losing the twice-to-beat incentive to UST last season.

“We were not going to throw away this shot. We fought for this. We definitely put our hearts out because we know we need this,” said Laput, who finished with 22 points off 19 attacks, 2 blocks, and 1 ace. 

“I’m super proud of all of us. We all contributed in this win.”

A deciding set seemed inevitable when the Tigresses grabbed a commanding 22-17 lead in the fourth set before La Salle went on a 5-0 rally to pull level at 22-22.

UST once gained the upper hand at 27-26 following a Laput service error only to witness the Lady Spikers win the next 3 points.

Canino, who paced La Salle with 24 points, 12 excellent receptions, and 10 excellent digs, knotted the score at 27-27 with an off-the-block attack, then a Lilay del Castillo block and a Laput down-the-line hit sealed the deal for Lady Spikers.

“The kids just showed their heart and how bad they wanted to win, so this is the result,” said La Salle assistant coach Noel Orcullo. 

Alleiah Malaluan chipped in 11 points and 10 excellent receptions, while Amie Provido contributed 10 points highlighted by a game-high 5 blocks as the Lady Spikers shut the Tigresses’ potent offense down.

La Salle recorded a whopping 20 block points to redeem itself against UST after the Lady Spikers settled for the third seed in Season 86 as they dropped their last elimination-round assignment against the Tigresses.

Armed with a win-once edge, UST then went on to dethrone La Salle in last year’s semifinals. 

The Lady Spikers, though, will have a chance to return the favor as they look to make quick work of the third-seeded Tigresses when the Final Four kicks off on Saturday, May 3, at the Araneta Coliseum.

Angge Poyos showed the way for UST with 24 points, although she got contained in the fourth set.

Heading into the semifinals fresh from back-to-back losses, the Tigresses will have no time to lick their wounds as they hope to drag La Salle to a sudden death for a shot at reaching the finals for the second straight season. 

Regina Jurado ended up as the only other UST player in double-figure scoring with 12 points. – Rappler.com