Lady Stingers outlast Altas, share top spot

MANILA, Philippines - University of St. La Salle-Bacolod fought back from two sets down by sweeping the last three as it turned back University of Perpetual Help, 23-25, 14-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-11, to finish tied for first in Group B at the close of the elims in the Shakey’s V-League at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan yesterday.

Patty Jane Orendain fired 22 kills, the last two clinching the come-from-behind victory for the Lady Stingers, who overcame a two-set deficit with a pair of closely fought wins before outplaying the Lady Altas at endgame in the decider.

USLS thus closed out the single round elims with a 3-1 card, tying its victim at the helm and gaining the momentum heading to the Last 8 phase of the tournament sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza.

Adamson later joined USLS and Perpetual in the quarterfinas as it hacked out a 25-17, 26-24, 25-22 victory over a tough National U side in the second game.

Siblings Michelle and Mayette Carolino combined for 27 hits while Pau Soriano and Angela Benting backed them up with 16 and 12 points, respectively, for the Lady Falcons, who improved to 2-1 for a spot in the next round.

The Lady Bulldogs closed out with a 1-3 card but could clinch the last quarters seat if Adamson beats St. Benilde (0-3) on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the league, backed by Accel and Mikasa and organized by Sports Vision, takes a four-day break in observance of the Lenten season. It will resume on Easter Sunday with the final elims playdate pitting Adamson and St. Benilde and the do-or-die match for the last quarters berth in Group A between FEU and San Sebastian.

Outhit, 50-56, the Lady Stingers leaned on their net defense to turn back the Altas, coming up with 15 blocks, including five from Royce Quijano and four from Kay Aplasca.

Orendain, on the other hand, took care of the team’s offense, finishing with 24 points while Aplasca wound up with 18, spiked by 11 attacks.

Perpetual drew five double-digit outputs from Jane Manzano (14), April Sartin (14), Jane Diaz (13), Sandra delos Santos (13) and Honey Tubino (13) in an awesome show of offensive prowess. But the Lady Altas failed to complete the win after an imposing second-set victory as the Stingers toughened up on their net and floor defense.

USLS finished with 25 excellent receptions, keeping the ball in play while setting up a number of scoring opportunities, particularly in the last three sets.