MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) –  The UP Lady Maroons finally got back on track after two shock losses in the UAAP Season 81 women’s volleyball tournament. 

Even if the Adamson Lady Falcons unleashed a scare in the opening frame, the Lady Maroons rallied back to defeat the San Marcelino-based squad in 4 sets, 25-27, 25-14, 25-12, 25-21, on Sunday, March 17, at the Filoil Flying V Centre. 

The victory propelled UP to a share of 4th place with Far Eastern University at 4-3 behind leaders Ateneo (6-1), defending champion La Salle (5-2) and University of Santo Tomas (5-2) at the end of the first round.

Adamson wound up at the bottom with University of the East at 1-6. 

Tots Carlos led UP with a double-double of 14 points and 26 digs while Isa Molde chipped in 14 points off 11 spikes, 2 aces and 1 block.

Ayel Estrañero made up for her lackluster outing in UP’s shock loss to National University with 28 excellent sets. 

Although UP took home the win, head coach Godfrey Okumu wants to see better finishes from the Lady Maroons.

“Today, we won. But again, our finishing (isn’t as good),” said Okumu. “It’s not up to the standard that we want it to be. That’s why we couldn’t manage to get the 1st set. We led well, and the 4th set was also a little challenging. But, we managed to finish well.” 

Adamson’s Joy Dacoron tallied 15 markers to lead her team in the losing effort while Tonnie Rose Ponce continued to impress with 33 excellent digs and 21 excellent receptions.

The Lady Maroons took control early in the opening frame, but the Lady Falcons capitalized on their errors and exploded with a 6-1 run to nab set point thanks to Bernadette Flora’s ace. 

UP extended the set until Tots Carlos’ attack sailed wide, allowing Adamson to reach third set point before a lucky MJ Igao drop shot ended the joust. 

But the Lady Maroons had vengeance on their minds in the following sets as they easily pulled away to double-digit leads.

In the 4th set, the Lady Maroons’ early 8-3 advantage served as cushion as the Lady Falcons rallied within 3 points, 12-15.

UP again pulled away to reach match point thanks to Adamson’s errors, but the Lady Falcons answered back with a 4-0 spurt, including back-to-back aces from Flora, to threaten the Lady Maroons anew. 

UP, though, held on and Maris Layug’s offspeed attack sealed the win for the Lady Maroons. – Rappler.com