University of the Philippines snapped its two-game skid in the UAAP Season 84 women's volleyball tournament with a three-set win over Far Eastern University, 25-10, 25-19, 25-7, Thursday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Marianne Sotomil starred for UP with 18 excellent sets to go along with four points. She also produced three double-digit scorers in the match which lasted for just an hour and 17 minutes.
UP took a dominant set in the opener before feeling some resistance from the side of FEU in the second frame. Unfortunately, the Lady Tamaraws failed to sustain the same energy in the third set as the Fighting Marrons established a 16-point advantage, 22-6, off of a Julianne Monares attack error to lock the win for good.
“They did a really, really good job,” said Fighting Maroons head coach Godfrey Okumu. “They gave their best. We’ve been struggling, until today we were not able to find our rhythm and I’d say the girls did fantastic today.”
Alyssa Bertolano top scored with 14 points, seven excellent digs, and four excellent receptions while Ethan Arce added 13 points. Stephanie Bustrillo chipped in 12 points as the Fighting Maroons went up to 5-6 to remain at the sixth spot.
Jean Asis and Chen Tagaod paced FEU with six points each while Roselle Asis and Jovelyn Fernandez had three apiece. The Lady Tamaraws, who were already out of Final Four contention, suffered their eighth consecutive loss to drop at 1-10 at the seventh spot.
UP will square up against the top-ranked National University on Saturday at 10:00 AM while FEU will face University of Santo Tomas at 12:30 AM. (Dennis Lachica, Sportsmanila Photojournalist)