Lionesses, Lady Stags enhance bid for semifinals

MANILA, Philippines - San Beda College and San Sebastian turned back their respective rivals yesterday to strengthen their semifinal bids in the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament at Lyceum gym in Intramuros.

The Lionesses went through some anxious moments before thwarting the Arellano Lady Chiefs, 25-23, 24-26, 24-26, 25-19, 15-8, while the Lady Stags leaned on veteran Joy Benito to sweep past the Jose Rizal Lady Bombers, 25-20, 25-10, 25-22.

The Lionesses and the Lady Stags thus moved to joint third at 4-2 while the Chiefs dropped to sixth place at 3-3.

The Lady Chiefs put up a gallant stand against the Lionesses, who had to crawl from a 1-2 deficit to force a decider.

Janine Marciano soared for a kill and skipper Cherry Quizon served a winner for a 6-3 San Beda advantage in the fifth set. The Lionesses, with rookie Kim Dela Vega and Ces Molina joining the attack, then held on to frustrate their rivals en route to the win.

The Lady Bombers, meanwhile, slid to 1-5 in the company of St. Benilde Lady Blazers at eighth place.

In the men’s side, the Chiefs advanced to the semis following a 25-20, 16-25, 24-26, 25-18, 15-10 win over the Red Lions.

The Chiefs grabbed the solo lead and clinched one of the semis slots with a 6-0 mark. The Red Lions took their first defeat in six games.

In the juniors side, the Baby Chiefs crushed the Red Cubs, 25-18, 26-24, 25-16.