Lady Bulldogs slay Blue Eagles to stay in hunt for semis bonus

MANILA, Philippines -- The National University Lady Bulldogs boosted their twice-to-beat advantage chances in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament after sweeping the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 25-22, 25-16, 25-15, Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

Alyssa Solomon led NU, which tallied its fourth straight win in the tourney, with 23 points off 19 attacks and four service aces, while Vange Alinsug added 15.

The Lady Bulldogs breezed through in the match that only took an hour and 24 minutes.

In the third set, NU led as much as nine points, 20-11, with an attack error by Ateneo.

Back-to-back points by the Blue Eagles capped by an attack by Faye Nisperos cut the lead to seven, 13-20, but NU was just too much.

A kill by Solomon, an error by Lyann de Guzman and an off-the-block attack by Solomon ended the match, 25-15.

“Nakikita namin yung goal na pagdating sa performance na hindi dapat kami maging complacent, dapat lagi kaming merong pinaghuhugutan sa panalo,” Solomon told reporters after the game.

Former rookie-Most Valuable Player Bella Belen was limited to just two points in the winning effort.

No Ateneo player scored in double figures. AC Miner spearheaded the Katipunan-based squad with nine points.

De Guzman and Yvana Sulit added eight apiece.

NU rose to 9-2 in the season, good for solo third. It is currently a half game behind the second-seeded La Salle Lady Spikers.

Ateneo dropped to 3-8.