By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs extended its winning streak to five straight games after blanking the University of the East (UE) Lady Warriors, 25-13, 25-19, 25-16, in the ongoing UAAP Season 86 Women’s Volleyball Tournament on March 10, 2024, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
After dropping its opening game day against the formidable University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, the Lady Bulldogs immediately flipped the switch and are yet to drop a match in two weeks.
Bella Belen was once again in her element after leading NU with an all-around performance of 11 points built from 12 successful attacks, 10 excellent digs, and five excellent receptions.
NU quickly fed Belen once she stood in the front row and gave her multiple looks in attacking the ball. From her signature down-the-line attack to her crafty off-speed hits, the former UAAP Rookie Most Valuable Player (MVP) stepped up when her team needed her the most.
With Belen’s fiery start, the Lady Bulldogs pummeled the Lady Warriors offensively and capped off the opening set with a string of defensive sequences to hold UE to just 13 points.
UE fought back harder in the following set after super rookie Casiey Dongallo heated up midway through the second frame.
However, just when Dongallo started to pick up her offensive groove, the Lady Bulldogs’ middle blocking took full effect.
The duo of Sheena Toring and Alyssa Solomon locked up Dongallo whenever UE orchestrated the plays for her and held her to a season-low in points after only tallying 11 markers in the losing effort.
Backstopping Belen for the Lady Bulldogs is Vange Alinsug who chipped in nine points derived from 11 successful attacks.
“Masaya kami kasi nagko-continue yung winning streak tapos nafield in lahat ng mga players namin and then nagperform at nagcontribute ng points,” said NU head coach Norman Miguel after the win.
