In a thrilling match at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City, the Far Eastern University Tamaraws dominated the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, securing the first twice-to-beat advantage in the UAAP Season 86 men’s volleyball tournament. The Tamaraws emerged victorious with a scoreline of 25-17, 25-22, 25-22, maintaining an impressive record with only one loss in 13 games.
The Tamaraws showed their dominance in the third set, taking a commanding lead of 19-12. However, the Fighting Maroons staged a comeback, narrowing the gap to just two points at 23-21. Ultimately, a well-placed spike by Jomel Codilla secured the win for FEU at 25-22.
Andrei Delicana led the scoring for the Tamaraws with 11 points, supported by a balanced scoring effort from Dryx Saavedra, Martin Bugaoan, JJ Javelona, Lirick Mendoza, and Vincent Nadera. Meanwhile, Louis Gamban led the charge for UP with 10 points, with Daniel Nicolas contributing nine points.
With this victory, FEU is set to finish at the top of the standings for the first time since 2012 and will face defending champions National University Bulldogs in their final game. On the other hand, UP dropped to a 1-12 record and will take on the University of the East Red Warriors in their next match.
In another game, NU dominated Adamson with a score of 25-19, 25-17, 25-16. Leo Aringo and Nico Almendras led the scoring for the Bulldogs, while Ahmed Tahiluiddin top-scored for Adamson with eight points. NU’s strong performance secured them the solo second spot in the standings with a 10-3 record, positioning them well for the coveted twice-to-beat advantage. Adamson, on the other hand, fell to 4-9 in the season standings.
