The De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Blazers bounced back from their opening season’s defeat, sweeping the Lyceum of the Philippines University (LPU) Pirates, 25-21, 25-23, 25-17, yesterday, Jan. 17, at the FilOil Flying V Centre, San Juan.


Photo by Anne Valmeo

The Pirates started off the first set with a strong offense from Juvic Colonia, taking advantage of the Blazers’ piling errors but Blazers’ middle hitter James Laguit led his team with back-to-back points after the Intramuros squad’s five-point lead.

Meanwhile, the Taft squad managed to catch up to their opponent’s rhythm, decreasing their errors and lowering the gap to one point. Pirates Josue Velasco III, Charles Del Rio, Sean Escallar, and Eddsel Borres were able to contribute for their team with a total of 14 points combined, but Blazers Franz Almonte, Roniey Adviento, John Tero, Owen Bacani, and Ruvince Abrot immediately snatched the first set with their strong attacks, 25-21.


Photo by Anne Valmeo

The second canto began with both teams racing for the advantage, showing their strong defense and attacks. Laguit and Adviento showed off their unbreakable block, giving the Taft squad a two-point lead. However, Colonia’s attack immediately broke down the barrier in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Both teams managed to keep their offense and defense intact, along with minimal errors as the Blazers ended the set with a two-point lead, 25-23.

Top scorer Abrot was able to tie the score with a crosscourt kill despite the Pirate’s strong block in the beginning of the last set. Despite the Intramuros squad’s sharp hits through the Taft squad’s blocks, the Blazers were able to bounce back for every score, widening their score to seven points. Blazer libero Bryan Dumaran made a successful save from the Pirates’ ball, heightening the tension between the two squads. Abrot led his team with back-to-back points, earning 14 points as the match ended with a service error from the Pirates, 25-17.

The Blazers will go up against the Colegio de San Juan de Letran (CSJL) Knights on Jan. 20 at the same venue.

Box Scores:

DLS-CSB (3): Abrot 14, Laguit 12, Almonte 8, Bacani 8, Tero 7, Adviento 3, Dumaran 1, Fajardo 1, Magsino 0, Daculan 0, Dy 0, Gabuyan 0, Gauani 0, De Sequera 0.

LPU (0): Dizon 10, Tibayan 8, Velasco 7, Colonia 4, Borres 3, Del Rio 3, Castellano 1, Legaspi 1, Escallar 1, Saporna 1, Golloso 0, Moral 0, Binas 0, Colorado 0

Set Scores: 25-23, 25-21, 25-17