UNIVERSITY of the Philippines bucked the 38 points of Adamson University super rookie Shaina Nitura and scored a 25-15, 15-25, 24-26, 25-22, 15-10 decision yesterday in the 87th UAAP women’s volleyball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.
Middle blocker Niña Ytang led the scoring load for UP with 20 points while open spiker Irah Jaboneta tallied a triple-double of 18 markers, 12 digs and 11 excellent receptions as the Fighting Maroons ended their first-round campaign with a 3-4 mark.
UP also had huge contributions from outside spiker Joan Monares and opposite hitter Kian Olango, who had 15 points apiece, while the former also caught 17 digs.
The Diliman-based squad snapped its four-game skid while extending the losing run of Adamson to four and a 2-5 slate overall.
“Siguro, given na iyon, si Nitura possible talaga that she can score that many points, even more. Pero with the UP team, tulong-tulong talaga kasi iyon iyong binabantayan natin sa kanila. Pag may nawawala sa plano, binabalik lang natin sila kasi we need to work as a group. Hindi pu-pwedeng isa-isa,” UP mentor Benson Bocboc said.
The Fighting Maroons displayed their resiliency in the fifth frame as they went on a neck-and-neck exchange with the Lady Falcons.
Jaboneta rallied UP with a back-to-back hit for an 8-5 edge and then kept their momentum going for a 3-1 run to make it 12-9. Jaboneta finished the match off a through-the-block hit.
Nitura, who had 35 attacks and three service aces, surpassed the 35 points set by UST’s former star Cherry Ann Rondina in 2019 during the league’s 81st season and Ateneo legend Alyssa Valdez in 2013.
