Lady Altas edge Stingers in thriller, enter semifinal

MANILA, Philippines - Perpetual Help rallied from four points down in the fifth set then foiled University of St. La Salle-Bacolod’s last-ditch fightback to carve out a 26-24, 19-25, 24-26, 28-26, 15-12 squeaker for a spot in the Final Four of the Shakey’s V-League Presented by Smart at The Arena in San Juan.

The Lady Altas pounced on USLS’ service error to shatter the 12-all count in the decider then Shyrra Cabriana delivered a service ace before Thai import Pornpimol Kunbang unleashed a power-packed kill that pierced through the Lady Stingers’ defense to end the thrilling two-hour, eight-minute match before a big Sunday crowd.

The victory was the reigning NCAA champions’ fourth against one loss as they joined the Ateneo Lady Eagles and the UST Tigresses in the semis of the league’s season-opening conference sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza.

Ateneo lords it over the field with a 6-0 mark while UST, the former six-time champion making its return from a two-year hiatus, totes a 4-0 slate.

San Sebastian took the first seven points in the fifth set and went on to finish off Far Eastern U, 25-19, 19-25, 25-16, 23-25, 15-5, and move within a win from completing the semis cast.

Jeng Bualee took charge in the decider which the Lady Stags dominated with their power game as SSC zeroed in on the fourth and last Final Four berth with a 3-2 card while ousting the Lady Tams, who fell to 1-5, from the semis race.

Bualee finished with a whopping 35-kill performance for a 37-point output.

Meanwhile, the Perpetual-USLS match and the SSC-FEU duel will be aired starting at 7 tonight on AKTV 13, according to the organizing Sports Vision. – Roland Quilente/Contributor