The rookie-laden University of the Philippines (UP) Lady Maroons ended the elimination round of the UAAP season 78 women’s volleyball tournament on a winning note, snapping a three-game losing skid and stepping a foot in the Final Four stage Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Beating the lackluster University of Santo Tomas (UST) Tigresses, 17-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20, the Lady Maroons are now at 8-6 for fourth place.

To enter the Final Four outright, UP has to hope that National University (NU) will lose to La Salle on Wednesday.
An NU win will result in a playoff for fourth place between them and UP.

The Lady Maroons are the only squad who has not made a Final Four appearance since women’s volleyball was televised in 2006. They last made the Final Four way back in Season 65 in 2002-03.

Super rookie Isa Molde paced the Lady Maroons with 23 points while middle hitter Marian Buitre quietly added 12 points.
The Lady Maroons, while lagging behind in the first two sets, saw daylight midway in the second set through excellent net defense and reception, thawing a 5-10 deficit to equalize the game at one set apiece.

The Tigresses nonetheless pounced on the third set, opening a 15-9 salvo through the solid spiking of EJ Laure but a series of aces by Jewel Lai stymied UST’s momentum.

It was all UP in the fourth set, with Molde, Buitre, Nicole Tiamzon, and Kathy Bersola conspiring with crucial points to win the game.

Laure led the 5-9 Tigresses with 20 points while the graduating Carmela Tunay added 12 points in her final UAAP game. Alex Cabanos also played splendidly in what could be her final year with 49 excellent sets and three points off aces.

[simpleviewer gallery_id=”256″]