Altas blast Bombers, wrest volley solo lead

MANILA, Philippines – Perpetual Help smashed Jose Rizal, 25-16, 25-20, 25-19, to seize the solo lead from reigning titlist Emilio Aguinaldo in the men’s division of the 91st NCAA volleyball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City yesterday.

Skipper Bonjomar Castel and Rey Taneo Jr. took turns and finished with team best 12 and 11 hits, respectively, as the Altas nailed their fifth straight victory to jump to the top and stay on course of regaining the title it lost to the Generals last year.

“If we keep on playing with this kind of killer instinct the whole tournament, we’ll have a chance to get that championship again,” said Perpetual Help coach Sammy Acaylar.

EAC blew its chance of regaining solo first after it ran into a game Lyceum of the Philippines U and absorbed a heartbreaking 23-25, 25-14, 22-25, 25-18, 14-16 defeat, the former’s first in six outings.

Aram Abrencillo and Joeward Presnede came through with clutch points in the fifth and deciding set and finished with 17 and 15 hits, respectively, to help the Pirates snatched the biggest upset of the season thus far.

Reigning MVP Howard Mojica unloaded a match-best 29 points but he was outplayed by the duo of Abrencillo and Presnede in the final set that left the Generals skidding to their first defeat after soaring to a 5-0 start.

“We made some key adjustments, that really turned the tide,” said Lyceum mentor Emil Lontoc.