UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas pulled out all the stops to deny Shaina Nitura and Adamson's upset bid in five sets, 25-18, 23-25, 22-25, 27-25, 15-8, in the UAAP Season 87 women’s volleyball tournament on Wednesday.
Down two sets to one, Reg Jurado played hero ball by scoring the last four UST points in a 10-5 set-clinching blitz which erased one Adamson match point.
Then came a red-hot 4-0 UST start to the fifth-set tiebreak — a lead it held onto all the way to the finish.
In doing so, the Golden Tigresses snapped a three-game skid and avoided what would've been their longest elimination round losing streak since Season 80 seven years ago at five in a row.
UST kept its hold of a top four spot with a 6-4 card.
Adamson, meanwhile, has now lost six of its last seven matches.
It also failed to complete a two-game prelims sweep over its España counterparts that would've been its first in two seasons.
The Lady Falcons dropped to 3-7.
Surviving Nitura
Nitura erupted for her third 30-piece of the season with 36 huge points — two shy of the league's single-game scoring record in the women's volleyball tournament which she also set.
Jurado came through when it mattered most for UST with a 20-point, 18-dig double-double.
Still at her best, Angge Poyos topscored for the gold-and-black with 27 points, 15 receptions and seven digs.
Over on the Adamson side of things, Nitura converted 32 of a massive 104 attack attempts to go along with 11 digs and nine receptions.
Nigerian utility winger Frances Mordi had her first triple-double with 21 points, 19 receptions and 11 digs.
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