Tigers nip Tams to move a win away from UAAP volleyball title

University of Santo Tomas inched closer to its fourth consecutive title in the UAAP men’s volleyball tournament, defeating Far Eastern University, 20-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-23, Wednesday at The Arena in San Juan. The Tigers got big games from Jayson Ramos and Salvador Depante who both provided solid support for the reliable John Paul Torres. The trio conspired in one big play after another, enabling the España-based spikers to take Game 1 and move one win away from wrapping up the best-of-three championship series.

Ramos had 14 points, Depante added 13 and Torres chipped in 11 for the Tigers, who came back from a set down to take the next three sets. FEU’s Karl Dela Calzada came up with a big block against Torres to knot the count at 23-all in the fourth set. But Torres came back with two booming kills to seal the win for the Tigers. “I expected JP (Torres) to be guarded in this game," said UST coach Emil Lontoc. “I told him to just hit the ball consistently." But Lontoc wasn’t satisfied with his team’s performance. “There are instances na nawawala kami. Marami kaming missed receive na dapat sa amin na ‘yung point," said Lontoc, whose squad took advantage of FEU’s ineffective center blocking during the game. UST goes for the sweep and the championship on Saturday at The Arena in San Juan, seeking to give the school something to cheer about in its celebration of its 400th year. Rodolfo Labrador scored 18 points while Nestor Molate added 17 for FEU.- Reuben Terrado, RCJ, KY, GMA News