Bulldogs oust Tamaraws, battle UST Tigers in finals

Games Sunday (The Arena, San Juan) 10 a.m. – FEU vs Adamson (3rd place) 12 noon – NU vs UST (Game 1)

National University (NU) returned with more aggressive plays as it disposed of Far Eastern University (FEU), 25-18, 33-31, 25-14, yesterday to arrange a championship showdown with University of Santo Tomas (UST) in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Collegiate Conference at The Arena in San Juan City.

Riding on the crest of their 25-21, 25-20, 21-25, 25-21 Game 2 triumph last Sunday, the Bulldogs needed only 68 minutes in dispatching the Tamaraws in the rubber match of the best-ofthree semifinal series.

Bryan Bagunas starred for NU by walloping 18 kills to finish with 23 points, while Kim Malabunga chipped in 12 points built on eight spikes and four blocks.

It was a revenge of sorts for the Bulldogs against the same rival that knocked them out in last year’s semifinals. FEU eventually lost the crown to Ateneo, while NU settled for fourth place after succumbing to UST in the bronze-medal match.

This time, the Bulldogs will be facing the UST Tigers in the best-of-three finals starting Sunday at the same venue. UST swept Adamson in their own semis affair.

Apart from overpowering FEU in attacks, 44-34, NU also provided a solid defense at the net anchored on Francis Saura, who made five of the team’s 13 blocks.

Ricky Marcos and Angelo Almendras took charge of the floor defense with a combined 24 digs.

Redijohn Paler was the lone double-digit score for FEU with 15 points as the Morayta-based squad also struggled with its serve by managing only once ace from Reco De Asis.