The De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Lady Blazers floundered against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, 1-3, to conclude their Shakey's Super League Pre-season Championship campaign, today, Nov. 4 at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
Hopes were high for the game's underdogs, the Lady Blazers, as they forced a decider against the pre-season favorites, the UST Golden Tigresses, who were utilizing a twice-to-beat advantage. But the Lady Blazers struggled, seen in the opening period of the game, committing errors on both ends that gave the Golden Tigresses an early lead, 3-8. The trio of Jade Gentapa, Gayle Pascual, and Zamantha Nolasco triggered the first successful rallies of the Taft squad, limiting the expanding lead of UST, 6-10. But, the lack of offensive consistency and receiving efforts continued to hit hard on the Lady Blazers, which gave a good run to the Golden Tigresses, 11-19. Wielyn Estoque and Mich Gamit tried to rally back with their respective attacks, but the receiving errors of the Lady Blazers continued to bleed until the end of the set. The first set ended unfavorably for the Lady Blazers, 15-25.
The second set is a continuation of the Lady Blazers' off plays, as errors hit hard on the Taft squad causing the Golden Tigresses to snatch the early lead, 5-10. But Rhea Densing turned the momentum over after executing three straight power kills to cut down the gap, leading all second stringers in the set, 9-12. A strong individual rally by UST’s Regina Jurado triggered a faltering tempo for the Lady Blazers, with the receiving end as the main weakness point of the team. Despite the efforts of Densing, the Golden Tigresses continued to dominate as they took the second set, taking advantage of the Lady Blazers' struggling defense, 16-25.
The well-rested first stringers manned the court for the Lady Blazers to start the third set, after being on the sidelines for the whole duration of the previous set. The trio of Estoque, Pascual, and Densing powered the plays of the Taft squad to be at par with the Golden Tigresses, 7-8. Errors struck on both parties, resulting in a much closer scoring gap. Main setter, Cloanne Mondoñedo, also yielded points after executing two successful one-two plays, 10-10. Pascual immediately ignited in the set, tallying 5 attack points to finally create a strong lead in the game, 19-14. Densing and Estoque tagged up in finishing the set as both spikers landed two spikes each to secure a win, 25-19.
The Lady Blazers started dominantly in the fourth set, with high hopes of repeating a set win. Pascual handled the scoring load after making three consecutive attacks, 5-3. Densing immediately followed up in handling the scoring spree as she made six points to keep up with the Golden Tigresses, 20-19. Both teams were giving powerful kills and getting successful digs, making alternating lead changes and intense close rallies. The towering defense of Nolasco gave the advantage to the Lady Blazers, as she managed to block two consecutive attacks, 25-24. Pascual and Densing continued their crafts as they both made four extra attack points to keep the game even at 30-30. But the Taft squad fell short in the receiving end, once again, as they failed to dig a freeball given by the Golden Tigress Bianca Plaza, 30-32.
This led to the Lady Blazers failing to snatch the win, ending their campaign in the 2023 Shakey Super League Pre-Season Championship.
Pascual served as the best Lady Blazer in the game, tallying 16 points with 14 attacks, a block, and an ace. A notable performance was also seen from Densing who tallied 15 attack points.
Box Scores:
DLS-CSB (1): Pascual 16, Densing 15, Mondeñedo 7, Estoque 7, Nolasco 5, Apostol 3, Gentapa 1, Gamit 1, Catarig 0, Ondangan 0, Getigan 0, Estenzo 0, Basarte 0, Borromeo 0
UST (3): Jurado 17, Perdido 16, Poyos 15, Banagua 9, Plaza 4, Cordora 4, Bacalso 3, Gula 3, Carballo 3, Coronado 3, Hilongo 3, Rocafort 1, Pepito 0, Caasi 0
