Lyceum of the Philippines University weathered Mary Rhose Dapol's monster outing to stun University of Perpetual Help System DALTA, 25-21, 24-26, 18-25, 25-22, 15-11, to remain unbeaten in the NCAA Season 99 women's volleyball tournament on Saturday.
The Lady Pirates were on the brink of their first loss but hung tough to close out the hard-fighting Lady ALTAs and improve their record to 4-0, tying Benilde and Letran at the top of the standings.
Perpetual, meanwhile, dropped to an even 2-2 even as reigning MVP Dapol gave it her all with a career-high 35 points on top of 17 digs and 22 receptions for a massive triple-double.
Down 2-1, the Lady Pirates refused to ease on the gas pedal with the duo of Johna Dolorito and Joan Doguna giving Perpetual a difficult time as LPU forced a decider.
The Lady Pirates, who are out to prove their finals appearance last season was no fluke, raced to a crucial 3-1 early lead in the fifth frame before Shai Omipon fueled a 3-0 rampage that tied things up at 9-all.
Dolorito and veteran Jaja Tulang, who switched back to her alternate middle blocker position, hit the ball on her way down for a pivotal 11-9 lead.
With Dapol struggling to convert points since her 35th attack in the 4-5 mark of the final set, Charmaine Ocado rose to occasion and cut the deficit to one,11-10.
Dolorito, however, powered a 3-1 barrage before Tulang's ace put the nail in the coffin as LPU averted collapse and bagged its fourth win in as many games.
Three Lady Pirates reached double-digit mark with Tulang grabbing 20 points while Doguna and Dolorito each poured in 19 markers as the latter also collected 17 receptions.
In the first game, Perpetual's men's volleyball team made easy work of Lyceum with a 25-16, 25-17, 25-15 sweep to remain as one of the two unbeaten teams in the division alongside EAC.
Reigning MVP Louie Ramirez poured in another all-around performance of 14 points, 14 receptions, and six digs to keep their immaculate record intact at 4-0.
Middle blocker KC Andrade and Jeff Marapoc chipped in 11 and nine markers apiece to provide the lift as they routed the Pirates in just an hour and eight minutes.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
