With its roster gutted and their head coach miles away, University of Santo Tomas–Gameville refused to break—rallying from two sets down to stun Far Eastern University–DN Steel, 22–25, 20–25, 25–23, 25–23, 15–13, and crash into the Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference semifinals on Sunday, November 16, at the Paco Arena.

Despite missing stars Josh Ybañez, Al Bukharie Sali, JJ Macam, and even head coach Odjie Mamon, UST–Gameville clawed back from a seemingly hopeless deficit and completed a dramatic reverse sweep to lock in a 5–2 elimination record and strong momentum heading into the semis.

Assistant coach guides Golden Spikers’ comeback

“Pasalamat kami kay Lord kasi binigyan niya kami ng wisdom kung paano magkaroon ng [lakas ng loob] ‘yung mga bata. At the same time, ‘yung mga bata nagkaroon sila ng kumpiyansa na kaya nila,” said UST–Gameville assistant coach Benjamin Mape, who is calling the shots with Mamon and the three players currently with Alas Pilipinas in Taiwan.

Tied at 11-all in the fifth set, Gboy Dela Vega delivered a clean down-the-line hit before Charles Absin committed a costly attack error that handed the Golden Spikers a 13–12 advantage.

Sherwin Umandal followed up with a crafty drop ball for match point. FEU momentarily stayed alive thanks to a quick from Lirick Mendoza, but Dela Vega rose to the moment again, going off the block to seal the comeback after an exhausting one-hour, 46-minute duel.

“Nagkaroon sila ng kumpyansa, kasi nung una nagdududa sila sa sarili nila. Nung succeeding sets, kaya pala. So dun sila kumuha ng lakas na kaya natin kahit kulang tayo,” added Mape.

Standout players lead the charge

Trevor Valera led the UST–Gameville uprising with 16 points built on 10 attacks and six blocks, while Dela Vega added 15 points—all from attacks—along with 20 excellent receptions.

Umandal, Kris Hernandez, and Andrei Delicana chipped in nine points apiece, while John Catinsag added eight as the Golden Spikers overcame a staggering 39 errors to keep their season alive.

Earlier in the day, UST–Gameville was still in danger of missing the semifinals, but Alpha Insurance’s loss to Criss Cross eventually cleared the path in the tournament organized by Sports Vision and backed by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things, and Arena Plus.

The Tamaraws ended their campaign in sixth place with a 2–5 slate.

Doula Ndongala dropped a tournament-best 17 points, while Absin and Dryx Saavedra backed him up with 15 and 13 markers, respectively, in the loss.