By ADRIAN STEWART CO

College of St. Benilde Lady Blazers escaped an upset try by Enderun College Lady Titans for a 25-17, 20-25, 25-10, 25-27, 15-12 victory in the V-League Women’s Collegiate Challenge at the Paco Arena in Manila on Sunday, September 17.

Jade Gentapa was the standout performer for the Lady Blazers with 18 points, comprising 16 successful attacks and two service aces, as they ended the elimination round with a 6-1 win-loss slate.

Gayle Pascual contributed 17 points for the Lady Blazers, which will face the University of the East Lady Warriors in the semifinals in a battle of the two teams handled by head coach Jerry Yee.

After failing to close out the Lady Titans in the fourth set, the Lady Blazers trailed 5-8 early in the fifth set before they went on a 5-0 run courtesy of Clo Mondoñedo to take a 10-8 lead.

The Lady Blazers, the reigning back-to-back NCAA women’s volleyball champions, used that momentum to take the fight away from the NAASCU champion Lady Titans.

“Wala naman silang ibang problems. Ang problema lang nila ay ‘yung sarili nila. Pero nang maayos nila ang kanilang loob at kalmado na, nakabalik sila sa tamang direksyon,” Lady Blazers assistant coach JP Martinez said.

Erika Deloria top-scored for the Lady Titans with 22 points, while Althea Botor chipped in 21 markers as they ended their V-League campaign with two victories and five defeats.

In the first game, Mapua University Lady Cardinals concluded their campaign on a high note by defeating San Sebastian College-Recoletos Lady Stags, 25-15, 25-22, 25-22.

The Lady Cardinals relied on a balanced attack to finish the conference with a 2-5 win-loss record, while the Lady Stags suffered their seventh defeat in as many matches.

Roxie dela Cruz led the offense for Mapua with 13 points, 10 of which came from successful attacks, while Trixie Gojol recorded 10 excellent sets along with a service ace./ASC, WDJ