Golden Tigresses topple Lady Pirates to book quarterfinal ticket
By Deinell Vincent Esplana
The UST Golden Tigresses asserted their dominance after eliminating the Lyceum Lady Pirates in straight sets, 25–17, 25–19, 25–22, to stay undefeated and grab the last quarterfinal spot for Pool B in the Shakey’s Volleyball Super League 2022 held at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Saturday afternoon.
Missing their key player Eya Laure, the España-based squad brought out an all-around performance with rookie Xyza Gula being named as the Most Valuable Player of the game scoring five points, including the cross-court kill that ended the match.
An early 14–7 lead in the first set capped off by three straight points paved the way for the Tigresses to set the momentum of the match in their favor.
The Tigresses capitalized off the poor service receptions courtesy of the Lady Pirates as they suffered against Pierre Abellana, who scored back-to-back service aces.
LPU tried to keep their league hopes alive by cutting the Tigresses’ lead down to two in the last set but the rookie-laden UST showed grit in the match.
“Malakas po chemistry ng team namin since yung age gap konti lang”, Gula said about how their chemistry helped them to get the win.
With this win, UST sweeps Pool B with 4 wins and 0 losses, joining the Adamson Lady Falcons in advancing to the quarterfinals of the league.
The pool play of the quarterfinals will begin on Oct. 29–30. As of writing, the schedule has yet to be posted.
