The playoffs of the NCAA Season 101 Women’s Volleyball Tournament continued on Tuesday, with the Benilde Blazers and Mapua Lady Cardinals notching wins against the Arellano Lady Chiefs and Sad Beda Red Lady Spikers, respectively.
Benilde Shows Championship Poise vs. Arellano
The defending champions Benilde Lady Blazers bucked an opening-frame hiccup to beat the Arellano Lady Chiefs, 22-25, 25-15, 25-23, 25-17, and advance to the semis.
The Lady Blazers shook off a slow start after dropping the opening set, regrouping in the second frame to level the match with a convincing 25-15 win. Arellano again threatened in the third set, surging to a 15-9 lead and putting the defending champions on the back foot.
Benilde slowly clawed its way back behind the combined efforts of Clydel Catarig and Shekaina Lleses, capping a 13-7 rally to even the score at 22-all. Catarig then delivered back-to-back attacks to push the Lady Blazers to set point before teaming up with Cristy Ondangan for a crucial block on Moming Padillon that secured the pivotal third set.
Riding that momentum, Benilde asserted control in the fourth frame. Ondangan and rookie Cam Bartolome anchored the Lady Blazers’ net defense, helping the Lady Blazers establish a comfortable 16-9 advantage.
Zam Nolasco later powered a strong middle attack that widened the lead, while Catarig followed with a cross-court hit that moved Benilde to match point. The third year Lady Blazer eventually sealed the victory by converting on a free ball after an errant set from Arellano.
Nolasco led Benilde with 22 points, while Catarig added 21 to power the defending champions’ offense. The duo combined for 43 points in the win, which proppelled the Lady Blazers to their seventh straight Final Four.
Crisanta Servidad paced the Lady Chiefs with 22 points, while Cassey Florida and Fhaye Mangubat chipped in 9 each. Sam Tiratira added 6 points and 2 blocks as Arellano bowed out of the tournament.
Benilde will face the winner of the quarterfinal clash between Perpetual Help Lady Altas and EAC Lady Generals.
Mapua Shocks San Beda with a Straight-Sets Win
The Mapua Lady Cardinals forced a winner-take-all quarterfinal showdown after sweeping San Beda Lady Red Spikers in straight sets 25-22, 25-22, 25-21.
Mapua gained momentum in the third set after building a 10-3 lead behind an Aleck Leabres kill. San Beda responded with a quick rally led by Kat Molina, trimming the deficit to 11-7 before capitalizing on consecutive errors from the Lady Cardinals to close the gap further at 13-11.
The Lady Cardinals managed to regain their rhythm after forcing three straight errors from San Beda to restore a 16-13 cushion. But the Lady Red Spikers refused to go away, eventually tying the set at 21-all after an attack error by Franchesca Esteban.
Mapua, however, showed composure in the closing stretch, unleashing a decisive 4-0 run sparked by Freighanne Garcia and capped by a cross-court hit from Leabres to complete the straight-sets victory.
The Lady Cardinals leaned on a balanced offensive effort and steady playmaking to erase the twice-to-beat advantage of the Lady Red Spikers and push their quarterfinal series to a deciding match.
Leabres finished with 13 points, while Freighanne Garcia and Nicole Ong added 12 markers each. Garcia also turned in an all-around performance, collecting 18 digs and 13 receptions to complete a triple-double outing.
Setter Angellick Gem Gavica orchestrated the Mapua offense with 19 excellent sets to earn Player of the Game honors.
Angel Habacon paced San Beda with 16 points and 15 digs but received little support as the Lady Red Spikers struggled to keep pace.
With the win, Mapua set up a do-or-die quarterfinal match against San Beda on Friday, with the winner advancing to face Letran Lady Knights in the Final Four.
