De La Salle University is back in the UAAP women’s volleyball finals after eliminating the gritty University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, 25-22, 11-25, 25-21, 25-21, in the Final Four on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Lady Spikers weathered a tough fourth-set challenge as UST rallied to tie the score at 20-all, but key errors from the Golden Tigresses—including a costly service miscue from Angge Poyos—sealed the match in favor of La Salle. The win halted UST’s spirited campaign and avenged last season’s semifinal loss.
Head coach Ramil de Jesus, while satisfied with the result, acknowledged there’s still work to be done.
“Medyo happy… kasi slow start eh, ang tagal makapag-adjust. Eventually nagpaikot kaagad ako ng setter, so nakita ko naman na nag-work. Ine-expect ko pa na mas makagalaw pa sa susunod na game. Marami pa kaming dapat ayusin,” he said.
Angel Canino led the Taft-based squad with 19 points from 17 attacks, while Amie Provido and Shevana Laput chipped in 15 and 14 points, respectively. La Salle also dominated the net with 11 blocks compared to UST’s nine, with Laput and Katrina del Castillo registering three blocks each.
The victory dampened the stellar efforts of UST’s Cassie Carballo and Reg Jurado, who scored 22 and 21 points, respectively.
La Salle’s road to the finals was far from smooth. The team had its worst start in nearly two decades with a 1-2 record, but they recovered strongly to finish the eliminations at 9-5, tying UST. They then beat UST in the playoff for the No. 2 seed to earn a twice-to-beat advantage.
“Yung UST, hindi rin talaga madaling kalaban. Grabe ang depensa nila, hindi basta-basta naggi-give up,” said Canino.
“Kailangan talaga pusuan kasi gusto rin ng UST na makabalik ng Finals. Pero mas ginusto rin namin kasi we have a goal.”
This marks La Salle’s 21st UAAP finals appearance. The Lady Spikers will once again face defending champions National University in a highly anticipated finals rematch of Season 85, where La Salle emerged as champions.