UST sweeps beach volley opening weekend
By Joie Frances Timbas
The quest for another golden double begins.
The UST Lady Spikers and Tiger Sands showed dominance through a perfect record of not one set lost in the opening weekend of the UAAP Season 85 beach volleyball tournament at the SM Sands By The Bay.
With the return of the women’s beach volleyball tournament since the pandemic began, the duo of reigning MVP Babylove Barbon and Gen Eslapor survived FEU’s Gerzel Petallo and Melody Pons in their extended opening matchup, 23–21, 21–17, Saturday morning.
Come the afternoon when the weather conditions became rainy, Barbon and Eslapor did not mind and made quick work of UP’s Euri Eslapor and Alyssa Bertolano, 21–10, 21–13.
Barbon and Eslapor ended their perfect weekend as they showed maturity against Ateneo’s Pia Ildefonso and Ysa Nisperos, 21–8, 21–14, on Sunday.
Meanwhile, in the men’s division, the Tigers Sands had the same victorious weekend.
Jaron Requinton and Rancel Varga annihilated DLSU’s Noel Kampton and Vince Maglinao, 21–12, 21–15, and Ateneo’s Jian Salarzon and Amil Pacinio, 21–12, 21–18 on the first day.
The following day, their next casualty was UP’s Dan Nicolas and Erl Eusebio, 21–15, 21–10,
Historically being the most successful women’s beach volleyball program in the UAAP, the Lady Spikers are on their journey for their eighth title. While the men are gunning for their fourth consecutive chip and seventh overall.
Looking to keep things perfectly going, the Lady Spikers will be up against the Adamson Lady Falcons and the UE Lady Warriors, meanwhile, for the Tiger Sands, they will face the FEU Tamaraws and the Adamson Soaring Falcons, at the same venue on Wednesday, Nov. 23.
