THE defending champions De La Salle Lady Spikers are on a winning streak anew, getting the better of the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs, 25-21, 25-11, 15-25 and 25-12, in a key University Athletic Association of the Philippines match yesterday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Ended the opening round with a loss, the Lady Spikers have now won back-to-back games while fortifying their hold of solo second spot in Season 79 with a 7-2 card.
In the first game, the Far Eastern University (FEU) (5-4) bounced back from a disheartening loss previously, shutting out the still-winless Adamson University Lady Falcons, 25-9, 25-20 and 25-11.
La Salle battled NU in a nip-and-tuck affair for much of the opening set but had more to give in the wind-up to secure the frame.
In the second, the Lady Spikers got off to a strong start and never looked back after for a dominating close.
The third set though would see NU taking command.
It held a 16-11 lead at the second technical knockout before going on a 9-4 run to take the set.
Rocked by their Set 3 defeat, the Lady Spikers blitzed at the start of the fourth frame, building a 10-1 lead before extending it to 16-5 by the second technical time out.
They made it a 12-point cushion at 20-8 and breezed to the win after.
The win thrust La Salle to still within striking distance of league-leading Ateneo Lady Eagles (7-1) while NU (5-4) dropped to a share of fourth spot with FEU.
Kim Dy led La Salle with 17 points, 12 off spikes, while Mary Joy Baron finished with 15, six points off blocks.
Setter Kim Fajardo had 41 excellent sets to go along with six points.
Jorelle Singh topped NU with 12 points.
“We want to continue improving and winning. Our target is to secure the first or second spot and this win is big for us,” said La Salle coach Ramil De Jesus after the win.
LADY TAMARAWS
Meanwhile, FEU rebounded from its loss to La Salle last time around by making short work of hapless Adamson (0-9).
Coming back with more “stability” and fire than in their previous match, the Lady Tamaraws did not leave anything to doubt with the straight-sets victory.
Chin-Chin Basas was the top-scorer for FEU with 16 points, followed by Bernadeth Pons and Remy Palma with 10 points each.
The Lady Falcons, for their part, were paced by Jema Galanza with seven points.