FEU rips NU to beef up playoff bid

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws proved that they’re determined to make it to the title round again in the UAAP Season 81 women’s volleyball tournament.

FEU notched its first straight-set win of the season over the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22, on Wednesday, April 10, at the Filoil Flying V Centre.

The Lady Tamaraws inched closer to a playoff berth as last year’s finalists improved their record to 8-4 while the eliminated Lady Bulldogs fell to 3-9.

Heather Guino-o led the Lady Tamaraws with 11 points while Jerrili Malabanan followed with 10 points.

FEU head coach George Pascua credited his veterans’ leadership for the convincing win over the Lady Bulldogs.

“Sila mismo ang nag-lead. Maganda, maganda ang nangyayari ngayon kasi nga na-achieve na namin. Hopefully ma-sustain lang namin yung momentum,” said Pascua.

(They were the ones who led the team. What happened was really great because we achieved a straight-set win. Hopefully, we can sustain the momentum.)

Audrey Paran paced the Lady Bulldogs with 11 points off 10 attacks and 1 block.

FEU had a dominating 12-5 start, but the Lady Bulldogs rallied back with a 9-3 run to close the gap to one, 14-15. But as the Lady Tamaraws took the lead in the second technical timeout, they eventually cruised to take the opening frame.

NU’s early errors in the 2nd set gifted FEU with another big lead and the Lady Tamaraws stretched their advantage to 10 points, 16-6. Although the Morayta-based squad committed errors of their own, the Lady Tamaraws managed to pull through to nab a 2-0 lead in the match.

NU was within striking distance early in the 3rd set, but the Lady Tamaraws pulled away as Jeanette Villareal scored 3 straight points that powered a 6-0 run, 16-9.

The Lady Bulldogs later countered with their own run and had a chance to extend the match as they knotted the 3rd set at 22-all. The Lady Tamaraws, though, stayed poised and closed it out for their first dominant win of the season. – Rappler.com

Add a comment

There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.

Beatrice Go

More commonly known as Bee, Beatrice Go is a multimedia sports reporter for Rappler, who covers Philippine sports governance, national teams, football, and the UAAP. Stay tuned for her news and features on Philippine sports and videos like the Rappler Athlete’s Corner and Rappler Sports Timeout.