The De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) men’s and women's beach volleyball teams ended day three of the NCAA Season 98 beach volleyball tournament with two wins and two losses on Jan. 19 at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone Sports Complex.
The first game of the Lady Blazers saw a hotly contested first set that propelled the girls in green and white to an early 10-6 score against the San Beda University (SBU) Lady Red Spikers. The Lady Blazers were leading for over half of the first set, 16-14, until the Lady Red Spikers dropped surprise attacks to bag the set with 21-19. Wielyn Estoque opened the second set with tougher attacks to slowly pull away from the Lady Red Spikers, but frequent net touches and service errors from the Lady Blazers brought the girls in red to a four-point advantage and eventually stunned Benilde with 15-21. The ladies in green and white lost both sets, 0-2, after committing errors that secured the match points for the Lady Red Spikers.
Despite the shiny sun, it was another gloomy morning for the Benilde Blazers who failed to bounce back from their back-to-back defeats yesterday. They started their first game of the day against the SBU Red Spikers with a first-set loss, 14-21. Eager to return to the win column, they managed to stay alive and claim the second set, 21-17. However, the Red Spikers quickly recovered and snagged the third set with 15-11.
During the afternoon games, the Lady Blazers clinched their fourth win in dominant fashion after defeating Jose Rizal University (JRU) Lady Bombers in two straight sets. The Taft duo opened their second and last match of the day with composure as Lady Blazer Jessa Dorog banked on her placement attacks that managed to land on openings to start the first set, 11-7. Lady Bomber Lyka Egera stepped up for Marianne Aloña who suffered from a left foot injury mid-game. The Lady Bombers tried to back things up in the second quarter by taking advantage of the Lady Blazers’ struggle to predict their gameplays. A sudden burst of energy in the JRU side also hindered Benilde from breaking the tie but Dorog surprised the opponents with powerful back-to-back attacks to close the game, 22-20.
Meanwhile, the Benilde Blazers are off to a rough start as they opened their afternoon game against JRU Heavy Bombers with a first-set loss, 20-22. Come the second set, a gritty Taft duo entered the sands after dropping a nine-point margin to force a third set, 21-12. They managed to sustain their winning ways and successfully clinched a victory after a thriller third set, 15-8.
The Benilde Blazers now have a 3-4 record and are currently sixth in the standings, while the Lady Blazers have a record of 4-3 and are currently fifth in the standings.
Continue to catch the Lady Blazers and the Benilde Blazers in their upcoming matches via GTV Channel, NCAA Philippines Youtube Channel and Facebook page, and GMA Sports PH Facebook page until Jan. 21.
