Heroes aplenty in Fighting Maroons' slaying of Lady Spikers

MANILA, Philippines — On the brink of elimination and against the favored De La Salle Lady Spikers, the UP Fighting Maroons banked on a slew of heroes to keep their Final Four hopes alive in the UAAP Season 87 women's volleyball tournament.Joan Monares, Kassy Doering, and Kianne Olango epitomized the fight in the Fighting Maroons as they slaid the Lady Spikers in five sets, 26-24, 18-25, 19-25, 25-22, 16-14, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday.Monares fired 16 points including the down-the-line clincher plus seven digs and five receptions; Doering hammered 15 markers including three blocks and Olango added 14 points.Thanks to the trio, the fifth-running UP, which previously shocked defending champ NU and also topped Final Four contender FEU, scored a big win to rise to 6-6 heading to the Holy Week break.Monares talked about delivering another match-clinching point just like what she did in UP's stunner against NU last month."I'm really grateful that my teammates trust me. It means a lot to me that they let me take the last point and I try my best to make it count for the team," said the fourth year spiker.Doering, the Maroons' one-and-done foreign student athlete, shared how she drew strength from her teammates to guard the middle for UP."I think it's just about finding that fight within us and within my teammates. As soon as we feel like we might falter, I look to my teammates to kind of rekindle that spark inside, and I think that's what showed up today," said the American volleybelle.Olango, UP's prized rookie from NU Nazareth School, knows that the Fighting Maroons could not stay in the cloud nine for a little longer than they should."I think we're just staying consistent with what we're doing. I feel like we're doing well, but there's still room to improve, so for now, we're focusing back on training."Monares, Doering, and Olango aren't the only heroes for UP, though, as Jaz Manguilimotan, Niña Ytang, and Irah Jaboneta also came through.Manguilimotan tossed 24 excellent sets and Ytang added 11 points. Jaboneta, meanwhile, flaunted an all-around game of nine points, 18 digs, and six receptions.Then there's UP head coach Benson Bocboc who outwitted his pal, mentor, and the legendary La Salle coach Ramil De Jesus."Overall, I think we did well. There were just some moments where we strayed from the plan, so I couldn't help but shout a bit but we managed to bounce back. It was a close call, but luckily, the ones we expected to deliver came through during the crucial moments."