The De La Salle Lady Spikers extended their mastery over rivals Ateneo de Manila University en route to a third straight win in the UAAP Season 85 women's volleyball tournament.
The Lady Spikers recorded a comprehensive 25-16, 25-20, 25-13 sweep of the Blue Eagles on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena to improve to 3-0 in the tournament.
They are now the only unbeaten team in the competition, after defending champion National University fell in five sets to the University of Santo Tomas on Saturday. Moreover, the Lady Spikers have now won 11 straight matches against the Blue Eagles since the Finals of UAAP Season 79.
Ateneo coach Oliver Almadro has yet to beat La Salle since he took over the team in 2018.
"Basta kami, tuloy-tuloy lang. One game at a time," said La Salle coach Noel Orcullo, who continues to call the shots for the Lady Spikers in place of Ramil de Jesus. "Basta ang reminder lang namin sa mga bata, 'wag magku-kumpiyansa."
The Lady Spikers set the tone through a 7-2 start in the opening set, and were rarely threatened the rest of the way. They peppered Ateneo with 19 kills in Set 1, eight of which came from La Salle's rookie star, Angel Canino.
Canino was sensational in her first rivalry match, exploding for 23 points on 21 kills, an ace and a block on top of nine digs and five receptions. Veteran Jolina dela Cruz added 13 points, including the final two points of the match.
The Lady Spikers' offense hummed against Ateneo, leading to a 49-27 advantage in attacks. Canino and dela Cruz combined for more kills, 31, than the entire Blue Eagles squad. They also had a 9-4 lead in blocks.
"Kung ano 'yung sistema na ginagawa namin, apply lang nang apply sa game. So, yung record sa taas, hindi namin inaano yan. Basta kami, continuous lang yung gagawin namin," Orcullo said.
The Lady Spikers' errors allowed Ateneo to stay within striking distance in Set 2, even as the Blue Eagles continued to struggle against La Salle's offense. A service error by Canino put Ateneo within three points, 21-18, late in the frame.
But Fifi Sharma's dump off an over-passed ball kept La Salle in control, and a power tip by Thea Gagate eventually put the Lady Spikers at set point, 24-19. Faith Nisperos saved a point for the Blue Eagles, but Kiara Cruz -- sent in to serve by Almadro -- instead sent her serve awry to give La Salle a 2-0 lead.
The Lady Spikers cruised in Set 3, rolling to a 23-12 lead off an ace by Princess Larroza and an error by the Blue Eagles. A dela Cruz over-reach temporarily halted La Salle's march to victory, but the veteran was quick to make amends: she scored the last two kills that completed their win after just an hour and 34 minutes.
Nisperos was the lone player in double-digits for Ateneo with 11 points. The Blue Eagles dropped to 1-2 in the tournament.
