UNIVERSITY of Sto. Tomas willed its way back from an imminent upset, pulling off a reverse sweep of Far Eastern University, 22-25, 21-25, 25-23, 25-20, 15-7, in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Xyza Gula came off the bench to save the day for the Tigresses, scoring 13 points on 12 attacks and one ace in a performance she punctuated with the final two points of the fifth set.
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That allowed UST to extend its win run to four games as the lone unbeaten team this season.
"‘Di naman sa perfect [na kami] pero ‘yun po, triny lang po namin mabawi agad ‘yung grit namin tsaka aggressiveness sa court. Makikita naman sa first and second sets na nawala ‘yung enjoyment sa court. Ta’s ‘yun po, binawi ko lang po sarili ko," said Gula.
Not only did UST erase an early two-set deficit, but it also managed to complete a come-from-behind win despite committing 40 unforced errors in five sets against only 16 mishits from FEU.
But the Tigresses made up for an error-plagued outing with a game-high 71 attacks on top of a 7-1 run to end Set 4 and a blazing 8-2 start to the fifth-set tiebreak to complete a gutsy finish to a two-hour and 43-minute long contest in front of a 4,165-strong crowd.
All-around performances from UST skipper Detdet Pepito (24 receptions and 20 digs), sophomore playmaker Cassie Carballo (25 excellent sets), and super rookie Angge Poyos (24 points) played part in their fourth victory in as many games.
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