De La Salle University rebounded strong from a wobbly opening set stint and swept Arellano University in the next three to carve out a 21-25, 25-18, 25-21, 25-22 victory in the 2022 V-League Men’s Collegiate Challenge on Friday at the Paco Arena in Manila.
JM Ronquillo fired 19 attacks and four blocks to finish with 23 points while Andre Espejo chipped in 11 markers for the Green Archers, who salvaged a seventh-place finish.
Joshua Rodriguez and Nathaniel Del Pilar added 10 points apiece for La Salle, which is using this tourney as part of its buildup for the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 85 early next year.
La Salle coach Aaron Velez, however, stressed that they are still a work in progress.
“This is very important for us, this is really a good experience for the boys and it’s an opportunity for us for the upcoming UAAP,” said Velez, the former mentor of Chery Tiggo in the Premier Volleyball League and defunct Philippine Superliga.
“Definitely, we have a lot of things to do, we have a lot of skills that we have to work on and most importantly we need to have a cohesive and united team this coming UAAP and our stint here definitely helped us.”
Arman Guinto scored 16 points and nine excellent digs while Carl Berdal added 11 markers for the Chiefs, who wound up eighth.
