Mixing good looks with potent spikes, Manilla Santos rammed in 13 hits as she helped Thai import Jindarat Kanchana upfront to power the Lady Archers to their third straight victory in this event presented by Shakey’s Pizza and backed by Accel, Mikasa and ABC 5.
Kanchana, one of the two Thai imports seeing action in this tournament, finished with 12 points, the same output by Jacqueline Alarca, who stepped up for Desiree Hernandez, a two-time UAAP MVP.
The victory thus enabled La Salle to tie the Lady Falcons, whose three wins in row underscored the San Marcelino-based spikers’ bid in this event organized by Sports Vision Management Group, Inc.
But La Salle coach Ramil de Jesus was far from being impressed.
"This is still not our game," said La Salle coach Ramil de Jesus. "We’re still adjusting to the game of our Thai import."
Hernandez, a vital cog in La Salle’s three-peat feat in the UAAP, saw action in the first set, sat out the second and barely played in the third to finish with just a point.
Con Con Legaspi, one of the team’s guest players who helped La Salle win the crown last conference, was the lone player who scored in double figures for the Lady Pirates. She had 10 hits.
The tall spiking pair of Dahlia Cruz and Beverly Boto failed to crash into the Lady Archers’ solid net defense and were held to just seven and five points, respectively.
The loss was Lyceum’s second in three games.
Less than a week after pulling off a marathon five-set win over arch-rival Ateneo, La Salle buckled down to work early and stamped its class by taking the first two sets in less than an hour.
They faltered a bit in the third set as Lyceum managed to stay close by knotting the count at 15-all before the troika of Santos, Kanchana and Alarca unleashed a rain of kills that sealed the win.