The Far Eastern University Tamaraws ended the first round of eliminations with a perfect 7-0 win-loss record, proving they are title contenders this season. For the latest updates on the tournament, including the full schedule, standings, and results, check out our page on UAAP Season 87 Men’s Volleyball: Schedule, Standings, Results.
After finishing first in the eliminations last season but being defeated twice by the University of Santo Tomas Golden Spikers in the playoffs, the mantra of this year’s batch of Tamaraws became “gold is the goal.”
The first round of eliminations was not easy as some of the players caught illnesses, but fortunately, they recovered before their match day. Tamaraws head coach Eddieson Orcullo also had a minor surgery during the eliminations.
“Wala lang titigil dapat sa ginagawa namin. Kung ano ‘yung nasimulan namin, hanggang dulo masustain namin ‘yung gusto naming mangyari sa second round,” Orcullo said after defeating the De La Salle University Green Spikers to stay flawless.
Here are the other things you missed on the fifth weekend of the UAAP Volleyball Tournament.
22
Olayemi Raheem continued to lead the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons as he scored 22 big points in his team’s 20-25, 25-18, 26-24, 25-20 victory against the Adamson University Soaring Falcons.
Raheem had 18 attack points and four block points, while Tommy Castrodes and Angelo Lagando contributed 17 and 10 points, respectively. On the side of the Soaring Falcons, Jude Aguilar scored a team high 27 points, while Dan Gutierrez, Mark Coguimbal, and Marc Paulino had 11 points apiece.
Fighting Maroons head coach Carlo Cabatingan noted that the team has found the right tempo for their game after suffering five consecutive losses. He said, “In terms of improvement, I think the five losses and even the first game, [those] were our six steps to learning so, we took each game as a learning experience. Adjustments were taken every game until we found the right timing, right tempo for the team to play this well.”
The Fighting Maroons finished the first round of eliminations at sixth place with a 2-5 win-loss record, while the Soaring Falcons were in seventh place with a 1-6 card.
19
The defending champions National University Bulldogs limited their errors to just 19 in their 16-25, 25-20, 25-21, 29-27 win against last season’s finalists, the University of Santo Tomas Golden Spikers, on Sunday, March 16. In comparison, the España-based squad had 39 errors in their match.
Bulldogs captain Leo Aringo led the team with 13 points, while Jade Disquitado contributed 12. Buds Buddin added 11 points, while Rwenzmel Taguibolos had 10 points. On the side of the Golden Spikers, Josh Ybañez returned to court with 17 points while JJ Macam and Jay Rack de la Noche had 15 points apiece. Middle blocker Trevor Valera manned the net with 10 points on six blocks and four attacks.
Bulldogs head coach Dante Alinsunurin admitted that the Golden Spikers’ 39 errors helped them to get the victory. He said, “Importante sa amin ‘yung gusto naming manalo. Kung ano man ‘yung nagiging challenge sa UST, kasi tinatrabaho talaga namin. Laking tulong din nung unforced errors ng UST para makuha namin ‘yung game.”
The Bulldogs finished the first round of eliminations at the second place with a 6-1 win-loss record, while the Golden Spikers sat at third place with 4-3 card.
27
Mikko Espartero had a massive game as he scored 27 points on 21 attacks and five aces in the Far Eastern University Tamaraws 22-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-19 win against the De La Salle University Green Spikers on Saturday, March 15.
Zhydryx Saavedra had 17 points on 16 attacks and a block, while Lirick Mendoza contributed 13 points on 10 attacks and three blocks. On the side of the Green Spikers, Noel Kampton led the team again with 18 points, while Rui Ventura was the spark off the bench with 15 points.
Now that they complete a first-round sweep, Tamaraws head coach Eddieson Orcullo reminded his boys not to stop what they were doing. He said, “Wala lang titigil dapat sa ginagawa namin. Kung ano ‘yung nasimulan namin, hanggang dulo ma-sustain namin ‘yung gusto naming mangyari sa second round,”
The Tamaraws remain unbeaten after the first round of eliminations with seven wins, while the Green Spikers were in the fifth spot with a 4-3 win-loss record.
8
The Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles had eight service aces in their 25-21, 25-19, 25-16 win against the University of the East Red Warriors on Saturday, March 15.
Kennedy Batas led the Blue Eagles with 15 points on 11 attacks, two blocks, and two aces. Amil Pacinio had 13 points on seven attacks, three blocks, and three aces, while Jian Salarzon contributed 12 points. On the side of the Red Warriors, Raquim Aceron was the lone bright spot with 14 points.
In this game, Blue Eagles head coach Vince Mangulabnan noticed that the balls were distributed more efficiently, as proven by the balance scoring. He said, “Sinasabi ko lang lagi sa kanila na may particular player talaga na mas makakarami ng puntos or like ngayong game, balanced nga kami. Itong stats wala naman sa akin as long as ‘yung collective effort namin, present.”
At the end of the first round of eliminations, the Blue Eagles were tied with the Golden Spikers and Green Spikers with a 4-3 win-loss record, while the Red Warriors sat at the bottom of the standings with 7 losses.
27
Noel Kampton exploded for 27 points on 23 attacks, three blocks, and an ace in the De La Salle University Green Archer 20-25, 23-25, 21-25, 22-25 win against the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles on Wednesday, March 12.
Kampton had much-needed help from Rui Ventura, who came from the bench, with 13 points on nine attacks, two blocks, and two aces. On the side of the Blue Eagles, Kennedy Batas scored 22 points on 20 attacks and two aces, while Jian Salarzon and Amil Pacinio combined for 33 points.
Against their rival school, Kampton said he played for pride. He said, “Super motivated to win today kasi, we’re fighting for our pride, school pride na ito, e. Sobrang big morale boost din nito kasi we beated our rival school.”
5
The National University Bulldogs had a hard-fought five-set, 20-25, 17-25, 25-18, 25-19, 15-12 victory against the Adamson University Soaring Falcons on Wednesday, March 12.
Buds Buddin scored 22 points on 17 attacks, three blocks, and two aces, while Jade Disquitado contributed 15 points. Rwenzmel Taguibolos and Leo Aringo added 13 points apiece. On the side of the Soaring Falcons, Jude Aguilar scored a game-high 26 points, while Marc Paulino and Mark Coguimbal scored 19 and 12 points, respectively.
Bulldogs head coach Dante Alinsunurin admitted that his team struggled in the first two sets of the match, before finding the right rhythm in the third set. He said, “Nung first part ng game namin, sobrang struggled kami sa pasa namin and serve namin, kaya hindi namin magawa ‘yung gusto namin gawin sa court. But na lang, pagdating nung third set onward, medyo unti-unti naka-recover kami hanggang sa dulo na nakuha namin ‘yung game. At least sa amin, na-improve ‘yung skills namin on time.”
