S87 Men's Volleyball Finals: FEU takes game 1 vs NU in 5 sets

Dryx Saavedra rose to the occasion while Amet Bituin lived up to his name as Far Eastern University moved a win away from ending a nine-season UAAP Men’s Volleyball championship drought.

The Tamaraws shook off a troubling third set slip, showcasing nerves of steel to fend off the four-time defending champions National University Bulldogs in a thriller, 22-25, 25-22, 13-25, 25-22, 15-13, and be on the verge of the UAAP Season 87 title on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

This brave come-from-behind FEU victory also handed NU its first loss in the Finals since Season 79 when Ateneo de Manila University swept the tournament. After that, the Bulldogs scored four straight sweeps and eight consecutive wins in the championship series.

The most successful team with 25 titles, the Tamaraws, look to finish the job and claim their first crown since Season 74 (2012) on Wednesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

The Bulldogs, eyeing to become the first squad in the Final Four era to win five in a row, are in a do-or-die situation for the second time this season. NU beat University of Santo Tomas in the Final Four decider last Wednesday.

“Adjustments siguro, yun ang pinaka tingin kong meron kami doon sa situation kanina. Yung fifth set talagang less errors siguro, talagang dapat male-less mo ‘yung errors or kung kayang wala siguro mas maganda,” said FEU head coach Eddieson Orcullo after the two-hour, 31-minute battle witnessed by over 5,000 fans inside the historic Big Dome.

“Gutom kami. ‘Yung gutom kasi minsan ang daming nagagawang alam mo yung preparation kung paano mo gagawin, kung talagang gusto mo yung isang bagay. Yun nga ang usapan namin na pilitin nating kunin kasi prepared naman tayo sa lahat ng mangyayari,” he continued.

("Adjustments, I think, were the biggest factor for us in that situation earlier. In the fifth set, we really minimized our errors—because you need to lessen your errors, or better yet, have none at all, which would be ideal. We were hungry. And that hunger… sometimes it leads to doing all the right things, like proper preparation when you really want something. That’s what we talked about—that we have to force ourselves to get this win because we are prepared for whatever might happen.")

The deciding set was as tight as ever that a single mistake could become a big swing momentum-wise.

Fortunately for the Tamaraws, the Bulldogs not only committed an error in the clutch but also made three miscues with FEU leading by just a point, 11-10.

NU head coach Dante Alinsunurin, with his squad down by one, gambled by putting in seldom-used setter Jeffe Gallego and spiker Jan Abanilla for Greg Ancheta and Leo Ordiales, but that just increased their deficit.

Gallego first committed a service error, targeting the sideline but instead hit the antenna, before Abanilla’s attack attempt in the next play did not cross the net for a 13-10 lead for the Tamaraws.

Still playing through the pain of his right ankle sprain, Michaelo Buddin got one back with a smart drop shot followed by an Ancheta dump ball off a misreceived ball to pull the Bulldogs to within one anew, 12-13, but error played a huge part again.

Buddin’s serve went out to give FEU the match point at 14-12 but Jade Disquitado responded with a strong spike, 13-14, before the rookie Bituin finished the match with a hit off the hands of Ancheta for the Game 1 win.

This triumph was also sweet revenge for the Tamaraws after the Bulldogs dealt them their lone loss in the elimination round, 25-17, 21-25, 25-17, 14-25, 9-15, that ultimately denied them an outright Finals berth.

“Sa akin kasi kanina, nag-commit lang talaga ako sa team and sabi ko lahat ng ibibigay sa akin dapat pusuan ko kasi ‘yun ‘yung usapan namin nung mga nakaraang araw, lahat ng gagawin mo isapuso mo,” said Bituin, who sparkled with 16 points on 13-of-24 spikes and three blocks.

("For me, earlier, I just fully committed myself to the team. I told myself that whatever ball is given to me, I will give my heart to it because that’s what we’ve been talking about the past few days—to put your heart into everything you do.")

The Bulldogs looked to have gotten the momentum after they dominated in the third frame, 25-13, but that did not really take away the fight from the Tamaraws, who braved through that storm through the efforts of Saavedra, Bituin, and Lirick Mendoza in the fourth.

Saavedra delivered a game-high 25 points on 21 attacks, three blocks, and an ace while Mikko Espartero was also a big contributor with 10 points and 26 excellent receptions, a big help to libero Vennie Ceballos who had 20-of-27 excellent receptions and 14-of-30 digs.

Ordiales continued to carry the scoring mantle for the Bulldogs, resetting his career-high for the second straight game with 23 points on 22 spikes and a block while Disquitado had 17 points, 17 receptions, and eight digs.

Buddin chipped in 12 points while Peng Taguibolos got nine points including four blocks.

(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team