By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers clinched another trip to the UAAP women’s volleyball finals after taking down the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses in just four sets, 26-24, 25-22, 20-25, 25-19, last May 3, 2023, held at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
It was a tough win for the ladies in green as the Golden Tigresses were able to put up a decent fight in the first two sets before slowing down in the fourth and final set.
Super rookie Angel Canino once again delivered a flawless game for the Lady Spikes after putting up a game-high 19 points built from 18 successful attacks.
Aside from her consistent superb scoring display, the Most Valuable Player (MVP) candidate also contributed to the floor defense department after tallying 10 excellent digs.
Canino steered the Lady Spikers to a hot start after completing Mars Alba’s series of cross-court sets that always turned into points.
Despite UST keeping it close in the first two sets, Canino’s mini-offensive runs helped DLSU pull away and go up to a commanding 2-0 lead.
The Golden Tigresses responded with a huge third set after superstar Eya Laure came alive and carried them to a 25-20 win but DLSU came right back in the final frame.
Highlighting the winning set for the Lady Spikers is their signature middle blocking that also delivered the killing blow for the Golden Tigresses.
With DLSU needing only a point to secure the Final Four win, Thea Gagate was in the right place and at the right time and swatted Milena Alessandrini’s spike that officially put them back in the grand finals.
“Happy dahil ayun nga, na-redeem namin yung pagkatalo namin nung second round. So eto, nasa finals na. Pero hindi pa tapos ‘to, mahaba pa kaya kailangan pa namin mag-training at mag-improve pa,” said DLSU interim head coach Noel Orcullo.
