THE NU Lady Bulldogs got off to a 2-0 start at the UAAP Season 88 women’s volleyball tournament after fending off the Adamson Lady Falcons, 25-23, 25-19, 28-26, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion on Wednesday.
National University (NU) denied Adamson’s bid to extend the match, pouncing on a free ball error by Shaina Nitura as Alexa Mata clinched it with an ace.
Super rookie Sam Cantada showed the way for the 3-peat seeking Lady Bulldogs, pouring 13 points, two aces and one block.
Cantada also logged nine receptions and five digs against her former high school teammates, coming up with a fitting follow-up to her rousing collegiate debut last Sunday.
Arah Panique aided Cantada with 13 points and four excellent digs, as birthday girl Vange Alinsug chipped in six points, nine digs and seven receptions.
Abe Pono dished out 14 excellent sets and logged three points and two digs.
“I’m very proud and very happy that we got the win even though we struggled,” said NU head coach Regine Diego.
“It’s one way for us to learn more, and we need to gel more because this is kind of a new team. We just have to play humble and continue working.”
Shaina Nitura paced Adamson with 18 points, seven receptions and six digs.
Frances Mordi backstopped her with 16 points, five digs and three receptions.
The Lady Falcons dropped to 1-1.