Lady Falcons endure gutsy Blazers stand

MANILA, Philippines - Adamson bucked the absence of two guest players and St. Benilde’s solid net defense to escape with a 25-20, 18-25, 24-26, 26-24, 15-10 win yesterday in the sixth Shakey’s V-League at The Arena in San Juan City.

Paulina Soriano fired a career-high 21 hits while Rissa Jane Laguilles added 18 points for the Lady Falcons, who also drew a superb game from reserve hitter Angelica Quinlog to pick up their second straight victory and third overall against a lone loss.

Quinlog dished out a personal best 12 hits, including two service winners and one block as she made up for the absence of reigning MVP Nerissa Bautista, who is still playing in an international tournament in Vietnam, and Lilet Mabbayad.

Bautista is expected to suit up for Adamson when the Lady Falcons clash with the Far Eastern U Lady Tams on May 10 in the homestretch of the single round elims in the league sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza and organized by Sports Vision.

It was the second five-set win for the defending champions, who were also pushed to the limit by the Lyceum Lady Pirates last Sunday.

Guest player Maureen Penetrante scored 24 hits for St. Benilde, which dropped to its second straight defeat after an opening game win over Univ. of the Phils. Katty Kwan backed her up with 21 points while Cindy Velasquez and Giza Yumang each had 12 points.

Lyceum broke into the win column after dropping its first four games as it beat UP, 25-19, 25-16, 20-25, 25-19, in the second game.

The win kept the Lady Pirates in the hunt for a quarterfinal slot while the Lady Maroons fell to their fourth straight setback.