Far Eastern University battled through a two-set deficit and completed a 22-25, 23-25, 25-12, 25-21, 15-10 win over Ateneo to keep its Final Four bid alive in the UAAP Season 88 women’s volleyball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Wednesday, April 22.

Determined to keep their semifinal hopes intact, the Lady Tamaraws refused to raise the white flag after falling behind two sets, with libero Marga Encarnacion and Lovely Lopez anchoring the defense and spiker Gerz Petallo powering the offense, particularly in the decider, where she ignited a strong start while capitalizing on the Blue Eagles’ untimely errors to pull off the come-from-behind victory.

The triumph over Ateneo (2-12) was a much-needed boost for FEU as it improved to 8-6 and momentarily stay in the semis hunt as the Tina Salak-mentored team awaits its fate pending the result of the University of Santo Tomas (8-5) and reigning champion National University (9-4) clash later.

“All throughout the season, marami kaming na-discover sa team. Eventually, parang too late for us na ma-discover kasi andaming nang nangyayari sa kanila. lso ‘yong pressure at stake dito sa Season 88 mataas din, nahihirapan silang ma-embrace and ‘yong maturity din,” said FEU head coach Tina Salak.

“Overall this season maraming ganap, memorable, also may mga joys and tears, but moving on, kinalabasan naman ng run namin hindi kami magkakaroon ng regret kasi the program is till andiyan,” she added.

If the Lady Bulldogs topple the Golden Tigresses, the latter would be forced into a playoff for the No. 4 spot against the Lady Tams. Otherwise, if the result swung the other way, FEU would bow out while UST would secure a semifinal berth.

Petallo impressed with a triple-double effort of 17 points built on 14 attacks and three blocks, 16 excellent digs, and 11 excellent receptions, while Lopez collected 13 points, six digs, and 26 receptions. Encarnacion, for her part, tallied 15 digs and 12 receptions with one excellent set.

“Zero-zero lang po talaga, kasi ‘di pa tapos ‘yong laban, kailangan lang namin bumalik, pusuan, mas angat pa [‘yong laro] and napakita naman po namin na talaga pinusuan namin ‘yong laro,” said Petallo.

Kyle Pendon, Faida Bakanke, and Cla Loresco also had ample contributions offensively with 13 which six off the block, 11, and 10 points, respectively. Jaz Ellarina and Mitzi Panangin chipped in nine points apiece, while Tin Ubaldo recorded 22 excellent sets on top of six digs and three points.

Dona De Leon showed the light anew for Ateneo with 15 points, while Jlo Delos Santos and Ana Hermosura, who both also shone defensively, added 12 and 10 points in a losing cause as the Blue Eagles concluded their run on a losing note.